Nameless Faces
by TheBrightestNight
Summary: She's broken, fractured and... mysterious. He's resentful, bitter and out for revenge. They say that love can conquer all, but when dark secrets resurface things take a turn for the worst. It's the age-old story of star-crossed lovers... but with a twist.
1. One

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: OC/OC pairing. This is my first Night World fic, so be kind. I'd appreciate that. Hope you enjoy!**

_We all wear masks and the time comes when we cannot remove them without removing our own skin. ~ André Berthiaume_

Wanted

The sun broke through the surface of the waves of the Atlantic Ocean, igniting the city of Manhattan in a deep orange; turning the sky a soft pink, vibrant red, and a touch of lilac.

Cars honked their horns; drivers stuck their heads out of their windows and yelled at other drivers. The sidewalks flooded with the morning commute.

A lanky, yet muscled-toned boy—about seventeen or eighteen, with a shock of chestnut-colored hair, and alluring dark brown eyes—leisurely made his way through all the crowds of people, looking for a good target (he had time for one more). Someone who was alone, definitely. Easily baited, must have. Same age, preferred.

Just then a cab pulled to a screeching halt at the curb near him.

"That's it, lady, I want you out of my cab!" the driver shouted, one of his arms flying out of his window, to emphasize his point.

"That's not fair!" the girl inside shouted back, just as livid. "I don't know where I am!"

"Too bad! You should've thought of that before you got me angry! _Out!_" he barked.

The girl huffed. "Fine, but you're not getting a dime from me." she spat, opening the door and stepping out. The tires screeched again as the cab pulled away, giving the girl barely enough time to jump out of its way and safely onto the sidewalk.

She was a slender, soft girl, dressed in a short denim skirt, a dark blue tank-top, with a long, black pea-jacket, and black, glossy, ankle-strap, two-inch heels. She was flushed and her sleek, long, rose-red hair was pulled back into a very unkempt bun, with strands hanging out every which way. She let out a groan staring wistfully at the street the cab had escaped down.

The brown-eyed boy smiled, knowing who his next target was going to be. It was like fate just dropping her into his hands.

With another sigh, the girl turned around toward the sidewalk, looking… confused and kind of lost, and very, very frustrated. Finally she stepped into the foot traffic, the boy quickly following. He made sure to stay a safe radius back, always keeping the same pace, always staying the same distance away.

* * *

><p>The girl walked fast, at first, because she was frustrated that man had kicked her out of his cab. (She really hadn't meant to anger him.) Then, after a block or so she slowed down to admire Manhattan; taking in all the sights and sounds, enjoying the cool, fall breeze, and the array of colors the sun made as it slowly rose into the pale blue sky. Finally after about a block or two of walking she remembered what she was looking for and went up to someone who was selling hotdogs to ask for directions.<p>

They talked briefly as the guy gave her directions to the nearest hotel. The red-haired girl then proceeded the way the guy had pointed but then sharply turned into an alleyway, not failing to notice the other person that followed.

The boy with the chestnut colored hair appeared again, but this time from one of the alleys that she was just approaching.

"You lost?" he called over to her.

The girl slowly walked up to him a smile playing at the edge of her lips.

"I'm afraid so." she sighed. "I was simply looking for a hotel. You see, I don't live here, I'm just visiting."

The boy smiled, showing off some of his perfectly white, perfectly straight teeth. The girl batted her eyelashes and bit her lip.

"You wouldn't… happen to know… where the nearest Marriott is, would you?" she asked taking another step closer to the dashing, young man.

"Follow me." he said not missing a beat, holding out his arm to further the act.

The girl took it with a flirtatious smile, and they walked down the alleyway. He led her around for a little while, to make sure she felt comfortable, before he made his move.

As they were turning into another alley he took the girl's forearm and slammed her into the brick wall. She let out a yelp as her back hit the wall, and her head snapped back.

"Wh-what are you doing?" she asked letting fear seep into her voice.

The boy smiled but it wasn't cute or boyish anymore. It was malicious; that of a hunter catching its prey. His soft brown eyes flashed with silver and became cold.

She tried to get away, but he had her trapped, keeping a tight hold on her arms.

"If you struggle more, it'll only hurt more, sweetheart." he hissed as his canines sharpened and elongated, so long they were almost down to his chin.

The girl's eyes widened in horror and she gasped.

"No," she choked. "Please… please…" She would've started crying, but it just wasn't physically possible for her anymore.

"Aw, isn't that cute." the boy murmured reaching up to stroke her cheek. She cringed and whimpered.

She begged in a small voice, "Please…."

"How about this?" He pulled his hand away. "You're cute. I'll make it quick and painless. You won't feel a thing."

The girl shook her head, her chest heaving.

"Please, just let me go. I-I p-pr-promise, I-I won't tell anyone." Her voice broke.

"I'm afraid I can't do that." he whispered taking her chin and tilting it up to expose her neck. As he leaned forward the girl pushed and shoved, but the boy merely chuckled at her meager attempts. When she could feel his breath on her neck, and his canines brush her skin, the girl let a dagger—the blade being replaced by lignum vitae wood—slip from her coat sleeve, and just before he sank his teeth into her flesh, she shoved the blade through the sternum and clear through the heart.

The boy froze and choked. He stumbled back slightly with shocked, angry eyes; the color an evil glint of liquid silver.

He stumbled forward toward her, but the girl casually moved out of his way. He turned and his back hit the wall before he slid down, gasping, too shocked to do anything about the dagger sticking out of his chest. That or it was just too painful.

"Oh, I know," the girl said in mock sadness. "Surprised?" she asked as she pulled out a golden mask (it was simply a masquerade mask that circled around her eyes; the kind that was a stick-on/peel-off; no ribbon/string needed to keep it on her face; and the color changed every other week or so), and put it on.

The boy's eyes widened, ever-so-slightly, in recognition before narrowing in animosity.

"Y-ou," he managed to choke out.

She smiled and laughed. "Me."

The boy looked at her murderously, like he wanted to kill her—snap her neck if he could—but she'd won already. He could barely talk, let alone move.

"Well, if it's worth anything, I had a… good time." she said as the light started fading from his eyes and the silver dissipated. She leaned forward and pulled the dagger out, wiping the sticky, thick stuff on her blade onto the guy's shirt-sleeve. "And, I suppose you were cute, too." she told him as he slumped and fell over to one side, his fangs collapsing in, his skin turning a sickly yellow, his lips shrinking, and his blank eyes drying up. The girl made a face. "Well… you used to be anyway."

As she was slipping the dagger up her sleeve she heard a slow, dramatic clap come from behind her, from the entrance of the alley. The girl didn't seem surprised in the slightly by this, like she'd sensed this other person already.

"Brava," The voice was male. "And what do I owe the pleasure, this morning, m'lady?"

Without turning toward him and, instead, taking a matchbook from her jacket pocket she said, "Just doing my job." and pulled out a match, lit it, and threw it on the mummified vampire. He burst into a big show of flames before dying down.

"Do I get to see the lady's face?" he asked. The girl turned around, hands on her hips. "Guess not," the boy said taking notice of the mask on her face. "_Beautiful_ eyes, though."

She sized him up as he slowly walked forward. He was, probably several inches taller than herself, kind of gangly. Some of his curly, golden-brown hair stuck out from underneath his fedora. His eyes were a deep moss green, and his face was half covered with a white mask; the white mask like the one you saw in _The Phantom of the Opera_. He was wearing slacks, and a navy blue button down.

He stopped a couple feet in front of her.

The girl smiled and pointed to her eyes. "Color contacts, but thanks anyway." she informed. "Yours aren't half-bad either."

The boy chuckled which had a weird affect on the girl. "Color contacts." he mimicked.

"Great minds think alike." she responded.

The boy laughed again. "So, you're her, huh?" he asked, sticking his hands in his pockets. She copied, except they were in her jacket pockets.

"That depends, who are you talking about?" she asked smiling coyly.

"The Vigilante." the boy stated.

The so-called, Vigilante, shrugged. "The Vigilante works. My friends call just me Vigilante."

"Do they now?" he asked. The Vigilante shrugged again.

"I think it really depends on the laziness. Who really wants to take the time to say _The_ Vigilante all the time, you know?" She gestured to the boy with her chin. "You?"

He smiled. "Take a guess." The Vigilante narrowed her eyes and examined him carefully. When she didn't say anything the boy held his arms out and did a slow circle before coming to a stop, facing her again.

"The Grim Reaper," she said. "You've killed the most skilled hunters of our generation in three states." A smirk pulled at the edges of her lips. "Apart from me."

The Reaper's color-contacted, moss green eyes blazed with a, sort of, hunger. "Apart from you." he repeated ruefully.

"And so the hunter becomes the hunted." The Vigilante finished.

"Indeed." The Reaper agreed. There was a pause between the two. "You don't look so tough." he stated, narrowing his eyes.

The girl laughed. "Why do you think they call me the 'The Vigilante'?"

"Because you've killed my kind." he answered carefully.

"More than you could count."

"Oh? And just how many _have_ you killed?"

"None of your business."

"How do I know you're not lying?"

"Is that an invitation?" she asked, answering his question with her own.

"Do I sense a challenge?" The Reaper's eyes arched with interest.

The Vigilante's lips curled up in a playful grin. "I don't know, you tell me." she answered, letting her blade slip from her sleeve.

The Reaper didn't miss this. "Then you wouldn't mind if I used a weapon, either, would you?" he asked, taking a switchblade out of his pocket and flipping it open. The blade glinted wickedly in the morning sunlight.

The Vigilante pursed her lips, thinking about this.

"Fine by me." she finally answered.

She threw the first punch, the Reaper caught her hand easily and spun her around, but she quickly grabbed his wrist, and, using his weight against him, flipped him over her shoulder and onto the asphalt.

He was quick to recuperate, spinning around with supernatural speed, and tripping her up. He jumped to his feet, his blade pulled ready to strike. The Vigilante quickly rolled away as the Reaper's steel connected with the ground, making sparks.

She landed in a half-crouch: her right leg was extended out, keeping her balanced.

Their eyes met for a brief moment, and a smile pulled at her lips. Without warning, with lighting speed, she lunged forward. The Reaper easily dodged this attempt—their faces coming so close their breath mingled for an abrupt moment—but the Vigilante hooked her foot on his ankle and he went sprawling. She spun around, left hand raised, her dagger ready to strike at a moment's notice.

The Reaper smirked. "You're good," he commented as she placed a foot firmly on his chest, driving the heel of her shoe into the soft spot just below the sternum. He winced.

But before the Vigilante could finish him off, the Reaper sent a shockwave of Power at her. Pure, electric, telepathic Power. It drew the breath out of her body, she dropped her dagger her arm throbbing with pain, and she stumbled back a couple steps.

"Of course," she spat, glaring at him, holding her paralyzed arm. The Reaper got up, the smirk still on his lips and shrugged, before brushing himself off. The Vigilante frantically looked for her dagger which was currently lying inches away from the Reaper's feet. There was no way she'd be quick enough to dodge in, grab it, and dodge out again. Maybe if her whole body wasn't tingling with pain, she would, but not now.

The Reaper took a step forward and the Vigilante lashed out, using her good arm to throw a punch, but he dodged smoothly, right before his left hand darted out, the switchblade poised to run her through.

However, just inches from being, possibly, gutted, the Vigilante managed to grab his hand. Fire raced through her veins, but she gritted her teeth and pushed through the pain. Carefully, keeping her concentration, the Vigilante moved her thumb over the inside of the Reaper's wrist, and pressed her nail into the tendons between the ulna and radius.

He hissed, but pushed harder. That only made the Vigilante push harder. Finally he dropped his blade, his hand tingling, and numb. She capitalized on this moment and threw a punch. Again, he caught her hand, but this time he pulled her forward, closer to him, while sweeping her off her feet, literally.

The Vigilante gasped and started to fall back. Inches before she hit the ground, the Reaper caught her arm and unwaveringly spun her around and slammed her up against the alley wall. She yelped and tried to throw another punch with her left arm, but it was weak because it was still blazing, and the Reaper easily caught her fist. She growled as he pinned her arms above her head.

The Vigilante's mind raced. This never happened! This was never _supposed_ to happen! It didn't seem possible that she'd lost. She had never lost before, and now… now she had. Now, it was looking pretty grim.

With one last fleeting attempt she tried slamming her foot onto the Reaper's, but it seemed this had been played on him too often, for he dodged, and pinned her feet together, making her totally immobile.

"But I'm better." he finished, his tone oozing with smugness.

The Vigilante gave him a black look, her chest heaving with indignation and resentment.

The Reaper leaned a little closer to her and she turned her head away, clamping her teeth together.

His nose skimmed her neck and an emotion, that was foreign to her, raced up her spine. It definitely wasn't fear; she'd known what fear was like. This emotion was different. It had her heart racing, her stomach tightening, her head swam and she gasped for air.

Okay, _now_ she was scared. What kind of ludicrous feeling was this? And why was _she_ feeling it? She hadn't felt any kind of emotion such as this ever, in her entire life! Not only that, but she had learned to push her emotions down. You couldn't fight with your emotions or you'd surely die. Not even the negative ones that usually fed that inner fire.

"Just get it over with already!" she snapped. The Reaper chuckled, his breath tickled her neck. The Vigilante squeezed her eyes shut as she fought to squash the emotion that flooded over her at the sound of his laugh, at the feel of him so close to her.

His lips brushed her neck and she thought, for sure, this was it. He was going to kill her like he did with all the other hunters. That's just what he did. However, he did something totally opposite of killing her; something that left her completely dumbfounded.

"Until we meet again, m'lady." he murmured in her ear before disappearing.

The Vigilante's eyes snapped open and she looked around, but all she saw was sunlight flooding through the alleyway, and the pile of ashes that was once the vampire with chestnut-colored hair. There was no sign of him; he'd even picked up his switchblade.

As the Vigilante picked up her own dagger, and slowly made her way back home, one thought lingered in her mind: _Why hadn't he killed me?_

**Well, there it is, I hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	2. Two

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

"Cosette"

"Expelled?" Alan asked. "Don't you think that's just a _little_ much? With all due respect." he added quickly.

The principal removed his glasses and massaged the bridge of his nose for a moment before putting them back on the looking at Alan.

"Usually, I wouldn't call for such desperate measures, but your daughter here is very…" He glanced at Emerald trying to think of an un-insulting word. "Eccentric."

"Please, just give her one more chance." Alan pleaded. "She _promises_"—Alan looked at his adopted daughter with a very stern look before turning to face Mr. Miller again—"to be better behaved. Isn't that right, Emerald?" he asked carefully.

Emerald nodded studiously. Today, she was wearing her black, all-star converse, ripped skinny jeans, and a fitted, black t-shirt that had one of her favorite bands on it: Three Days Grace. Her long, flowing, on the verge of being curly, raven-black hair was put into an inverted ponytail.

"Sir, this is the sixth school she's been to in two months." Mr. Miller stated, stressing "sixth" and "two."

Emerald raised her hand slightly. "Brearly doesn't count. I was only there for two hours."

Alan gave her a disapproving look that said, "Not helping." before facing the principal again.

"Sir, I realize that she's had a… troubled past. But please, _please_ give us one last chance. She gets wonderful grades; she's a great asset to this school. We just need to work on her attitude." Alan begged.

Mr. Miller pursed his lips and took a deep breath.

"Very well, but one more slip and she will be expelled. Understand?" he asked looking at Emerald.

She nodded. "Yes, sir."

"You are dismissed." Mr. Miller told them.

Nodding again, Emerald stood up and quickly walked out. Alan followed after a final farewell to the principal.

"You've got to stop doing this." Alan said when they'd entered the empty hallways. The bell had rung at least fifteen minutes ago.

"It's wasn't even my fault!" Emerald exclaimed as they came up to her locker. "He threw the first punch." She dialed in the code and started to get her things ready.

"You didn't have to respond by breaking his nose." Alan stated dryly. "Since when do you know martial arts?" Emerald opened her mouth to answer that but he continued on quickly. "Don't answer that. You know, you are lucky his parents aren't pressing charges."

"That's only because Alicia's a lawyer and you know that." Emerald stated. Alan looked at her. "I'm not saying that's a bad thing or that you blackmailed them or anything!" she exclaimed quickly. "All I'm saying is that you have the advantage in court." She slammed her locker door and started for the exit. "Now, if you'll excuse me I have to get going or I'll be late for work."

Alan stepped in front of Emerald, stopping her cold in her tracks.

"Just promise me that you'll try harder. We can't keep doing you favors like this. Just because we're rich doesn't mean we get special treatment. We can't _always_ buy our way into a school, and your track record isn't making it any easier."

Emerald chewed the inside of her lip. "I'm not guaranteeing anything." she finally said.

Alan sighed and moved out of the way. "I suppose that's the best I'll get." he muttered.

Emerald gave her adoptive father a casual salute before pulling the skateboard from the back of backpack, throwing it down, and jumping on, flying down the hallways and to the exit.

* * *

><p>"What's the verdict?" Carter asked at lunch the next day. She was a small-ish girl, with short, fiery red hair, curled into large ringlets, and glowing amber eyes, with tiny flecks that looked like dying embers of a fire. They tended to burn brighter when she was angry or excited. And she was one of Emerald's best friends.<p>

"I'm staying," Emerald announced grinning.

She got high-fives and fist-punches from her skateboarding buddies.

"Nice one! How'd you pull it off?" Danny asked. He was slight, and thin as a stick, with dark chocolate colored, curly hair and sparkling light brown eyes.

"It's because your parents are rich, isn't it?" Mackenzie chimed in. She was a petite girl who had a bob cut, medium dark brown hair with golden brown highlights. Her eyes were a penetrating jade green. At first glance you'd think that this girl was a cheerleader or a ballet dancer. If you ever tried to tell her that she'd probably hurt you. She was one tough cookie.

Emerald rolled her eyes. "Nah, you should've seen Alan beg the principal to let me stay. Money had nothing to do with it." she assured propping her feet up on the table.

Carter made a face and shoved her friend's feet off the table.

"I'm trying to eat here." she complained pointing at the cardboard fries and macaroni-and-glue on her tray.

Emerald snorted. "You can't call that food. I don't even know how you eat that stuff." She said this as she pulled out her sack lunch from her backpack.

Carter's eyes lit up, the little flecks sparking. "Ooo, what's that you have?" she asked her voice mock excited. "PB and J? _Again._" she finished dryly. Emerald shoved her.

"It's better than that… stuff you call lunch." she commented.

"Whoa, gnarly bruise you got there." Danny commented, his eyes narrowed, looking intently at a bruise on Emerald's elbow the color of red wine.

"Subtle." Mackenzie commented dryly.

Danny made a face. "Well, it's only true." he mumbled, pouting.

Emerald gave a passive wave of her hand. "It's not a big deal." she told them. "I was trying to do a twisted nightmare flip after a boardslide down a park stair railing and wiped-out." she explained flawlessly. They all looked at her a little skeptical.

"And, what?" Carter asked clearly not believing any of it. "Was there a second flight of stairs after? You don't get that kind of bruise from wiping-out."

All the eyes turned back to Emerald. She rolled her eyes and sighed exasperated. "Guys, seriously. It's nothing. I wiped-out. End of story." It was clear they all still had questions, but they kept them to themselves and continued on with lunch.

Half-way through, though, Carter nudged Emerald with her elbow.

"Anthony Winters, one o'clock." she muttered, her eyes flickering behind them. Emerald looked, blood flooding up to her face, and looked back at her flushed friend.

Anthony was one of the most popular, cutest, nicest guys in the whole school. He was a skateboarder like Emerald and her buddies, but he also played soccer. He was team captain, in fact. He was tall and very handsome with thick, longish, wavy, dark auburn hair and had these magnificent blue zircon colored eyes that sparkled when he smiled.

"Hey guys," his voice sounded.

"Hey, Anthony," Emerald murmured hoping she didn't look like a complete fool.

Carter wasn't even that brave. She simply looked up at him, smiled and then looked away.

"Mind if I have a seat?" Anthony asked pointing to an empty chair.

Mackenzie pulled it out and gestured for him to sit. She was probably the only girl in school who wasn't bewitched by his charm. "Go right ahead." she said.

Anthony smiled. "Thanks."

As he was taking a seat Emerald nudged Carter.

"You're hyperventilating." she informed.

Carter stuck her tongue out before turning to face Anthony.

"So, what brings you here on this fine afternoon?" she asked with a sweet smile, her eyes igniting to a friendly glow.

"To talk to you, actually." Anthony answered putting a hand on Carter's.

"Me?" she squeaked.

Mackenzie, Danny, and Emerald all rolled their eyes. Great, here came a yuck-fest.

Emerald tuned out and instead talked to Danny and Mackenzie about going to the skate park this weekend. Finally Anthony said goodbye to the group, got up and left.

Carter looked frazzled, but had a goofy grin on her face.

"He asked me out!" she squealed.

"Good for you." Emerald told her half-heartedly. The little green monster had reared its ugly head. Emerald had _dreamed_ of getting asked out by Anthony. It wasn't fair! Why did he find this sudden interest in Carter?

Emerald shook herself. What was she thinking? She'd vowed to never date. She could have eye-candy but promised she'd never, _ever_ date. Besides, Carter really liked Anthony, she should be happy for her! A good friend would be at least.

"So when's the big day?" Emerald asked.

"Well we couldn't help but overhear that you were planning on going to the skate park. Without out! As if!" she scoffed.

Emerald's eyebrows knitted together. "But that isn't _really_ a date, is it?" she asked.

Carter hit her arm playfully. "I'm not stupid. I know I have to get to know him better before we go off alone." she said. "It's good to know you have so much faith in me." she sniffed.

The bell rang.

* * *

><p>Emerald stood in the doorway of her adoptive mother's house. It was a the penthouse with five bedrooms and three bathrooms, a large living room, a good-sized family room, a gourmet-looking kitchen, and a small foyer.<p>

Alecia was the adoptive mother. She had impeccable coffee-colored skin. Her hair was a lovely shade of auburn, down to her shoulders and curly. Tonight it was curled into large ringlets because they had plans. She was a very kind, gentle woman. She was married to Alan, a successful published author of three _New York Times Bestsellers_, and they had two beautiful girls: ages 10 and 8; Margo and Nikki (respectively).

They were rushing around the house getting everything together: finding nice shoes, jewelry, make-up touch-ups, fixing hair. Right now Alecia was putting on a pair of big, silver, glimmering hoop earring while telling Nikki to change shoes and asking Margo to go upstairs with her to make sure she chose proper ones.

When she finally spotted Emerald she started and held a hand to her chest.

"Oh, Emerald you scared me." she gasped, composing herself. "You're here for the check, aren't you?" Emerald nodded. "It's over there on the table." she said pointing to a small table that was to the immediate left when you first walked into the door. Emerald walked over and picked up the check.

The thing was Emerald didn't actually live with her adoptive parents—an Emancipated Teen it was called. Ever since Emerald was fifteen she hadn't wanted to live with them anymore. It wasn't that she didn't like them; they were a very sweet family and had taken good care of her for fourteen years. But after what happened… the bond they had built snapped and they'd never been able to repair it.

And Emerald wasn't very far either. She lived at the Marriott on East 48th Street. Alecia and Alan made sure to check on her every other day and called when she couldn't. They was a very responsible parents. It was just a… complicated relationship.

"Is everything okay?" Alecia asked when Emerald hadn't left yet.

"No, this isn't going to be enough." Emerald told her straight out, turning to face her. Alecia and Alan helped pay for the rent—if you will—at the Marriott. Emerald really didn't want them to at first, but just got used to it after two years.

Alecia let out a long sigh. "Emerald, I can't give you anymore. This was your choice remember that. Besides I'm also paying for your food and supplies—for you and you're pets—and you education." Emerald knew this; she wasn't trying to be, or sound, ungrateful. She tried not to overspend when buying the things she needed for the week as a, sort of, thanks to her "parents."

"Yeah, but they raised the amount I have to pay." Emerald explained. "This isn't going to cut it."

"Don't you have a job?" Alecia asked just as Margo and Nikki walked back downstairs. "Now those are proper shoes." she commented nodding at her daughters approvingly.

"Yeah," Emerald said. "Of course."

"Part-time?"

"How else am I supposed to go to school?"

"Just get another job, then." Alan suggested, coming in from where ever he'd been.

Emerald sighed. "Listen, all I'm asking for is—"  
>"Come on Emma, don't be such a spoiled brat." Margo sneered. She was still pretty bitter for Emerald's decision. Margo had really loved having an older sister and not have to worry about taking care of Nikki constantly. She was probably the most bitter.<p>

Emerald gritted her teeth and ignored that nickname Margo had given her (she was probably the only one who could call her that and get away with it). "Look who's talking." she retorted.

"I'm rubber, you're glue. Whatever you say bounces off me and sticks to you." Margo sang looking proud of herself.

"You might want to pick on kids your own age, then, that might _actually_ be an insult." Emerald shot back. Margo opened her mouth to reply but Alecia quickly stepped in.

"Uh, Margo why don't you and Nikki go upstairs and put on your necklaces?" she asked ushering them toward the stairs. As soon as they were out of earshot Alecia turned back to Emerald. "What more do you want us to do? We can't give you any more money."

"All I'm asking for is five more bucks. That's it. Just five." Emerald begged. Margo and Nikki came back downstairs, quicker than last time, as they were just finished putting on their necklaces. "You're eight- and ten-year-old daughters each have their own diamond necklaces and you're telling me you don't have five bucks to spare?"

"Emerald, not now." Alan said taking control of the situation, using a very authoritative tone.

"You're going to a movie premier with Anne Hathaway." Emerald deadpanned picking the tickets off the small table and holding them up for Alecia and Alan to see.

"Speaking of," Alecia said snatching them out of Emerald's hand. "We have to be going or we'll be late. If you'll please," she waved to the open door that Emerald hadn't bothered to close because they'd gotten into an argument.

Emerald was hesitant but turned and walked out anyway shoving the check into her pocket.

They all went to the elevators.

"I'll take the next one." Emerald said gesturing for them to go in, as the elevator doors opened.

Margo and Nikki filed in but Alecia and Alan hung back.

Alecia was giving Emerald a sad, almost sympathetic glance.

"Take care, sweetheart." she murmured quickly stepping forward and trapping Emerald in a hug. Emerald was so shocked at this gesture that she didn't even hug back.

"We _do_ love you, very much." Alan put in also hugging her when Alecia had pulled back and into the elevator.

"Have fun at the premier." she muttered as Alan got into the elevator. The doors slid closed and Emerald let out a heavy sigh as the lights showed their decent.

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	3. Three

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

"Marius"

"Leaving?" Storm asked not being able to hide the disappointment in his tone. He looked at his father who was still the same age when his mother had—

But his eyes looked timelessly ancient; sad. Storm guessed it was because he couldn't let go of her just like himself. Of course he'd had to age still. He was eighteen now. "Do you _have_ to?" Storm asked, desperate, and hoping, that his dad was just planning some stupid surprise party, and not really leaving.

Adrian looked at his son, his eye tightened and he winced. Those stunning, electric blue eyes were exactly like his mothers. Right now they were glistening with hurt.

"I'm sorry, son. It was very sudden. I didn't know until about five minutes ago." he tried to explain.

"But, Dad—" Storm started.

Adrian put his hands on his son's shoulder comfortingly. "I know I said that we'd do something fun for your birthday, and we will. Just not today. I promise, when I get back. The moment I get back. I'll even bring you a souvenir."

Storm bit back his stinging comment and nodded. His dad sighed and stepped away. "You'll be fine here, by yourself for a couple of days?" he asked grabbing the handle of his suitcase.

"Yeah, I am eighteen. I know how to take care of myself." Storm replied some of his bitterness seeping through.

Adrian sighed again. "I'm sorry."

Storm followed his dad without a word as he headed toward the door. Before heading out though, Adrian turned around.

"Hey," he said catching Storm's attention. He looked up at his father. "I love you."

Storm sighed. "I love you, too, Dad." he muttered. Adrian would have to take that. He opened the door and got into the car that was waiting for him. Storm watched it drive down and then turn out of sight before slamming the door closed so hard the house shook. Great, another birthday celebrated alone in a big, empty house.

He started to head back upstairs but the doorbell rang. Storm trudged back to the door and as soon as he opened it Christian walked inside.

"Hi, Christian." Storm greeted dryly. He was one of Storm's friends, out of five. There were only so many Night People that could put up with humans, and Storm had only found five so far.

Christian was just under five feet, but his attitude made up for the difference. He had short, dark chocolate colored hair, with dark, penetrating indigo eyes.

"Hi, Storm," Christian replied. "Can I come in?"

Storm looked at his friend.

"Oh, lighten up. You're such a stick in the mud." Christian said, turning to face his friend.

"What do you want?" Storm asked, not in the mood.

"It's your birthday, you _need_ to get out. And I'm just the guy to do that." Christian grinned and pointed to himself, like he was the best thing that ever walked through the door.

"And where do you suggest we go?" Storm asked, closing the door and leaning against it.

"Clubbing, where else?" Christian said this like it was obvious.

"No."

"Aw, why not?" he whined.

"Not my thing."

"You're no fun." Christian muttered, sifting through some of the things sitting on a small table adjacent to the door. "Then what do you suppose we do?"

"Why don't you leave and I'll get back to you." Storm said with a smile.

Christian glared over at his friend. "Fool me once, man." he chided. "Now, wait a minute, what are these?" he asked picking up a fancy, official-looking envelope. Before Storm could stop him, Christian ripped open the envelope and pulled out three tickets to a masquerade at the Marriott on East 48th, Saturday from 9 to 11. "I think I just found what we're going to do." he sang.

Storm snatched the tickets out of his friend's hand. "A masquerade ball?" he asked slightly disgusted. "I didn't think you did dances."

"Have you ever heard a thing called, 'crashing'?" Christian asked putting an arm around Storm's shoulder, a mischievous smile on his lips.

"Oh, no. No. That's not my thing either." Storm said shaking off Christian's arm.

"Oh, yes. I'll just take one"—Christian reached over and plucked a ticket from Storm's fist—"and leave the extra so you can bring someone… special, birthday boy. I'll see you later." Before Storm could object or hit his friend, he was out the door. He grudgingly threw the tickets back on the small table and then made his way upstairs and to his room.

Storm sat down to finish his homework, but Christian had worn him out. He rested his head on the table and closed his eyes thinking, he'd just doze and have time to sift through all his jumbled thoughts. Instead he fell asleep.

* * *

><p>Cherry Kallahan—a lamia vampire—wasn't exactly like the other Night People. She didn't <em>totally<em> despise humans. Then again, she didn't exactly love them either. She… tolerated them. And she didn't go out and hunt, like all those young, teenage kids did. She had the humans come to her, and she didn't kill them either. It was very simple to just take a little blood and then erase their memories.

Her husband, Adrian, didn't tolerate humans as much as Cherry did, but only managed to put up with them because of Cherry. She was very encouraging and sweet.

One of the reasons she got the name Cherry was because when she was born she had a full head of dark, cherry wood colored hair. Her eyes were a stunning electric blue, contrast to her hair.

Adrian was almost the exact opposite: with a shock of fiery, blond hair and dark brown eyes, so dark, that if you didn't look close enough, they looked totally black.

Then there was their son who had inherited all of his mother's traits and his father's personality. He was sixteen at the moment and, somehow, Cherry had convinced Adrian to send him to a human school, where he could at least _try_ to be normal. (You know, other than the drinking blood part and having fangs thing, and all the other traits of being a vampire.)

Thankfully it wasn't that hard for him. All the girls flocked him, not failing to notice he was slightly more handsome than most of the boys there, and mysterious. But he just wasn't interested in any of the girls, much to their disappointment. He played tennis and was just… a kid.

Today was just like every other Friday. Cherry and Adrian's son was just getting back from school. The bus driver pulled up to his driveway that led down to a mansion. All the kids ogled at it, still amazed that he lived there. You see, his family was, kind of, rich. Cherry was a therapist, Adrian a psychiatrist.

He got off and turned to wave at his friends whose eyes were wide, mouths slightly open. They slowly and robotically waved back before the door closed and the bus drove off.

He was excited because tonight they were going out to celebrate his birthday. It had really been Monday, but, you know, school. So his parents promised to celebrate as soon as the week ended.

As their son came up to the house, though, he could instantly tell something was off. There was an underlying sense of worry and anxiousness. What made things worse was the door was wide open, the wood ripped away from the frame when someone had kicked it in.

He dropped his bag and ran inside.

"Mom!" he called frantically the worst popping into his head. When there was no answer he yelled again, cupping his hands around his mouth. "Mom!"

Silence.

Which was odd. He knew she'd be home early because she'd promised him this morning. And he was sure her hearing was just fine; definitely better than a human's. She should have been able to hear him.

Swallowing hard he tried not to panic and made his way upstairs, taking them by two. Maybe she was just taking a nap and the door was closed. When he got to the landing he called again.

"Mom," Except it was quieter this time, afraid that he'd wake her up if she was taking a nap.

He hesitantly took a couple steps forward. The hallway was dim, the only light a sliver coming from his mother's barely open door. Holding his breath he advanced a little faster now, thanking his stealth.

"Mom?" he asked in a low voice as he came to her door ready to go in and find her in bed, asleep. He pushed the door, it making a swishing sound as it glided over the carpet. What he saw would be engrained into his mind for the rest of his life.

"Mom?" he asked in a whisper taking a couple steps in.

Adrian looked up, tears in his eyes. He was holding Cherry's lifeless body in his arms. She had yet to decompose; her eyes were wide open, blank pools of blue, staring at nothing. Their son collapsed to his knees and crawled over to his mom and dad.

Tears welled up in his eyes. "Mom." he whimpered shaking his head. He looked up at his father the tears falling down his face. "Who—?" His father shook his head and held Cherry tighter to him. A moment later he put a hand on his son's shoulder. They looked at each other for a moment.

"I'm sorry," his father apologized. "I'm so sorry, Storm."

* * *

><p>Gasping, Storm bolted upright. He blinked confused for a moment because he wasn't in his bed. He was sitting at his desk. Then he remembered he'd been trying to do homework.<p>

He shoved his papers and pencil aside, and rested his head down on his arm again. But he didn't want to go back to sleep. Not after that.

A shudder ran through him and he closed his eyes as tears started to form. That had taken place two years ago. Storm still hadn't been able to get over it. Not even now, it was still fresh in his mind. He vaguely wondered if the pain was ever going to go away.

Sighing he lifted his head and looked at the picture of his family perched on his desk. The picture was actually taken the day before his mother had died. She had insisted that they get one of those expert photographers. This was the only one that his dad had wanted to save (but Storm had a feeling he still had the ones of Cherry alone).

It was of all three of them. The background was sky blue. Cherry was bending over with her arms slung over Storm's and his dad's shoulder who were sitting down. She was laughing her eyes alight with joy and excitement. Adrian was rolling his eyes and slightly looking away from the camera, and Storm was just there, smiling and rolling his eyes at his parents' antics.

Storm stroked the picture.

"I miss you, Mom." he murmured.

The pain in his chest increased and Storm stood up, and flopped down onto his bed, trying to get control of his emotions. Maybe crashing a party wasn't such a bad idea after all. He had nothing to do, and it _was_ his birthday after all, wasn't it? But crashing anything wasn't exactly Storm's style. It didn't seem right.

Storm lifted his head to look at his unfinished homework sitting on his desk. He let out another groan and dropped his head onto one of his pillows. He closed his eyes but his mother's dead face and staring eyes flashed behind his eyelids. He bolted upright and clenched his teeth, resting his forehead in one of his hands and looking over to his right. But the first thing he saw was the family picture. His heart ached and he looked away.

It was a hunter that killed Cherry. No doubt about it. What angered Storm more was that she hadn't done anything wrong. She never hurt or killed anyone and her thanks was getting a stake to the heart. Where was the justice in that? If it weren't for his father Storm would've spent the rest of his life hunting down the hunter who killed his mother.

For a while after Cherry died Storm loathed humans. They were vermin and they deserved to die. But Adrian pulled out the Mom Card and said that Cherry wouldn't want that. She'd want her only son to finish getting an education and to not blame the humans for any of this. Of course that gave him motivation to put up with the humans, but that didn't quench the hate he felt for the hunters.

_They_ were vermin. _They_ didn't deserve to be alive. They killed his mother in cold blood. Sure his kind killed all the time, but they should be keeping to the streets and killing _those_ vampires. Not barging into houses and killing innocents.

Storm pulled himself out of his miseries and sat up. Christian was right. He needed to get out.

He slipped off his bed and grabbed a lightweight jacket from his closet and looked at the family picture one last time before he headed out.

Storm wandered the Manhattan streets aimlessly, looking down gloomily at the sidewalk, his shoulders slumped and his head down, trying to ignore all people who were also out and about. It wasn't fair! Why did his dad even need to go on a trip? He was just a psychiatrist!

And this would be the second time he would be missing Storm's birthday. He'd missed last year's birthday for a business trip too. It wasn't as bad, Storm supposed, as he was making it sound, at least he'd been there for the rest of his birthdays, but still. It was his birthday. It was an important day for even an eighteen year old.

Cherry never missed his birthdays. Even if it meant ditching something important….

"Oh, Storm!" a familiar voice tinkled, rising above the sound of the cars on the street and the other people on the sidewalk.

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	4. Four

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

"Eponine"

"Dead?" Tasha choked. Tears welled up in her eyes and her lower lip started to shake. "They can't be dead." she whispered shaking her head.

Her Aunt rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't be such a sap." she spat. Tasha looked down and quickly wiped her tears away.

"You told me that they gave me away because they couldn't afford to take care of me." Tasha whispered, trying to not let her voice shake.

Aunt Jodi snorted. "That's only because you were five then." she stated. "Now you're ten. It's been five years. You've had to time to grow up. I think you can handle the truth."

"So… I'm never going to see them again? You got my hopes up for _five years_ only to tell me _now_, that they're dead?" With every word Tasha's tone rose in anger and resentment for her Aunt.

Jodi stood up and glared coldly down at her with cat-like, pale green eyes. Her golden-brown hair was pulled back into a tight bun, and, at her full height, she towered over Tasha at the moment.

"Don't you dare use that tone with me, young lady." she hissed. "I was trying to be nice. I was trying to protect you. You're such an ungrateful, little brat!"

Tears formed in Tasha's eyes again.

"Go ahead, go and cry, you little baby!" she mocked. Tasha quickly got up from her seat and ran upstairs to her room. "That's right, hide in your room!" Jodi shouted. "You're just like your weak, vermin-loving parents! They deserved to die!"

With those last words Tasha slammed the door to her room closed. She quickly went and crawled into her closet before breaking down into body-racking sobs.

Her parents were dead?

And now… now she was left with her Aunt. Her horrible, horrible Aunt….

"Tasha!" Jodi's voice came right outside the doors of the closet. Tasha's head shot up and she froze. The doors opened and she looked up at Jodi. "What are you doing?" Jodi asked venomously. "You are seventeen, almost eighteen. You are too old to be hiding in your closet!"

Tasha looked morosely at her shoes. "I'm sorry, if you feel that way, Aunt Jodi—" She broke off suddenly when Jodi's hand grabbed a fistful of her hair, pulling her to her feet. Tasha bit back a scream.

"Look at me when I am talking to you." Jodi snarled throwing Tasha down onto the floor. She quickly turned to face her Aunt.

"Why haven't you killed me?" she asked in a small voice. She let out a yelp and rolled over onto her right side as Jodi's food connected with her left.

"I'm not the heartless hag you think I am." Jodi scoffed. Tasha clamped her teeth together and held her throbbing side. "Now, wait just a minute," The tone scared Tasha. She quickly rolled back over and struggled to sit up. Jodi was just straightening out from bending over with something in her hands. "A picture of dear, old Mom and Dad?" she asked in feigned sadness.

"Give it back, it's _mine_." Tasha said getting up and making a grab for it. Jodi held it away from Tasha's hand and shoved her back to the ground.

"They're pathetic," Jodi told her holding the photo out for her to see. "They don't deserve to be called vampires. _Vermin_-lovers." she spat. "It's disgusting. To believe that my brother would marry someone like her? It makes me _sick_."

Tasha stood up. "Don't talk about my parents like that!" she roared getting into her Aunt's face.

Jodi's hand lashed out hitting Tasha clear across the cheek. With a growl Tasha threw her own hand out, but Jodi was ready for this and caught her wrist. "Careful now," she taunted tightening her grip on Tasha's wrist. "I broke your wrist once; don't think I won't do it again."

Tasha pried her wrist out of her Aunt's grasp.

"I'm not a little kid anymore." she said. "You can't bully and push me around."

Jodi's eyes blazed with fury, but she quickly took control of her emotions. "You should be lucky that I can't kill you, because if I could you would've been dead the day that you landed on my doorstep." she warned in a dark tone right before ripping the one and only picture of Tasha's parents into pieces. "I'm going out. I expect you to behave yourself while I'm away." Jodi told her in an icy voice, stepping over the torn pieces and heading to the door.

Tasha stared down at what was left of her only connection to her parents. No tears formed. She'd learned quick to cut the habit. Especially with how Jodi treated her when she did.

"Of course," Tasha finally answered in an almost inaudible voice.

The door slowly closed.

Tasha calmly sunk to the floor and picked up the ripped pieces. She went over to her desk, cradling them gently against her chest, and sat down, getting out the scotch tape.

It was of her parents dancing in front of a large, stone fountain. It was fall, leaves were scattered all around, and the colors around them were dim and gray, but the smiles on her parents' faces and the light shining in their eyes made everything seem just a little brighter.

Tasha gently stroked the fractured picture, making sure not to rip it apart again. They were one of her reasons that she kept living in Hell.

Tasha's parents were human lovers, which was odd because her father came from the infamous Redfern family.

Nicholas did actually used to hate humans, absolutely loathed them. Until he met Ebony Greenheart. He fell in love with her; the problem was that she _loved_ humans. She was one of the rare vampires that could stand them. That didn't "tolerate" them or "put up" with them. She acted as they were all old friends, like she was one of them.

But Nicholas loved her so much he learned to live with them. He changed just so he could be with Ebony, because she asserted the fact that she loved humans; she couldn't be with someone who killed and tortured them for fun and stand by and watch them hurt.

Then Tasha was conceived from their love. She was a sweet girl, very nice. As of now, she was tall, and had sensual, long legs. She was pale, like all vampires were, but she had this creamy complexion, that not even her light colored hair could ruin. She'd grown up learning that humans weren't vermin and they weren't bad. But when she was five, something happened (which she didn't know at the time) and was carted off to her Aunt's place (where she currently resided).

Jodi, like most Redferns, lived up to their namesake. She'd been trying for years, in vain, to convert Tasha back to hating humans. But Tasha knew that her parents would never want her to go back. So, she tolerated humans. She didn't love them like her parents had, but she tried her best to live with them.

That was one of the reasons Jodi treated Tasha like crap. She hated the fact that a descendent from the Redfern family could love humans. She hated her brother for marrying a sappy, weakling like Ebony. The other reason was probably getting stuck with Tasha in the first place.

She took from her mom. Tasha always tried her best to look on the bright side of things, and always smile. Things were going to get better for her. It wasn't like her Aunt was all that bad. She did provide her with a place to sleep and plenty of money to buy clothes (and other stuff), so, it wasn't too horrible. Of course the beatings weren't very fun, but they'd become less and less as she got older.

She had tried running away once, but that didn't turn out too well, so Tasha decided it was better if she stayed where she was until she was eighteen, which was one more year. Not even that, her birthday was coming up soon. The only problem was finding a place to live, a job to pay for it. (She tried not to think about the details whenever she could, though; it just made things more stressful for her.)

* * *

><p>Storm turned, looking to see who'd called his name. Tasha stood on her tip-toes, in her silver, designer sandals, waving a hand, and smiling brightly. Storm smiled back but it didn't match his eyes. She quickly rushed forward, dodging all the other people on the streets.<p>

Tasha wore a white tunic with brown flower designs on the bottom left corner of the shirt with short, denim shorts. (Vampires weren't bothered by the cold, it was just a given.) Her pin-straight platinum hair that shined like silver when the light hit it just right, was pulled over her left shoulder in a french-braid. Her rose-pink eyes were lit up with excitement and happiness.

They used to date, but they'd broken a couple months ago. They were trying to stay friends and it was working out pretty well, however, Tasha wanted to start dating again and still really liked Storm. She tried to hide her love for him, but it'd come out in spouts every now and again. Storm never seemed to notice and went on with what they were doing to keep the friendship status going.

Still, Storm was the only living reason Tasha put up with her life. She cared for him, and he cared for her. And they both knew what it felt like to lose a parent. Storm was the only one Tasha could really talk to. He was the only one that she could tell her secrets to. They'd been through a lot together. They were best friends.

"What brings you here?" Storm asked looking over at his ex as she came up to him.

"I was looking for you," she answered brightly reaching into her purse. "Happy birthday." she said pulling out a small, thin, long box wrapped in—none other than—silver wrapping paper with a red bow taped to a corner.

Storm hesitantly took it.

"You didn't have to do that." he muttered rubbing the back of his neck.

Tasha giggled. "It's your birthday, silly. Of course I did. Everyone should get presents on their birthday." she stated in a matter-of-factly tone. She smiled. "Well, go ahead, open it." she encouraged.

Storm slowed his walking so he could rip the paper. He crumpled it up and was about to stuff it in his pocket when Tasha quickly snatched it from his hand before shoving it into her purse.

"No way!" Storm exclaimed. "Are these tickets to Three Days Grace?" He stopped walking to look at Tasha.

She was practically glowing. "Yep. And there's two just in case you… you know… wanted to take a friend… or something." she mumbled looking slightly embarrassed, asking herself why he'd take her with him. For one she didn't even like Three Days Grace, for two, he'd swore they were _just friends_.

"Listen, thanks a lot." he said hugging her. She marveled this moment. "This is a great birthday present." They pulled back and stared at each other for an awkward second.

"So," Tasha started, turning quickly, just as Storm did, blushing lightly. They continued their slow walk. "Plans tonight?" She snuck a peek at Storm through the corners of her eyes.

"Nah," he answered. "I have school tomorrow. But Christian"—he made a face—"insists I go with him to crash some masquerade at the Marriott on Saturday. I guess that's my birthday party. Happy birthday to me." Storm mumbled miserably.

"Oh, sounds… fun." Tasha said absentmindedly.

Storm looked over at her. "You okay?" he asked, stopping abruptly. Someone behind Storm almost crashed into him and cussed before shoving his way past muttering something about ignorant teenagers.

Tasha stopped too and looked at him briefly before quickly looking away.

"Yeah, fine." she said, quickly wiping away the tears that had started to form, trying to make it look as if she was just rubbing her eye. But Storm knew better.

"Hey," he said, taking her hand. Tasha's breath caught and she looked over at Storm. His gorgeous electric blue eyes were soft. "You can tell me anything."

They continued to walk forward, Storm's hand firmly in Tasha's.

"It's just home." she mumbled. "You know: the usual."

Storm's hand tightened. "She's not beating you again, is she?" he asked in a harsh whisper.

"No!" Tasha exclaimed. "No, no, no. Of course not." she assured quickly. Storm looked at her unconvinced. She met his eyes. "I promise."

"I wish there was more I could do." Storm sighed sadly.

Tasha gently squeezed his hand and smiled. "You being here is all the help I need." she told him, which made Storm smile.

"Hey, uh, listen," Storm started, tactfully slipping his hand out of Tasha's. "I… I have an extra ticket to that masquerade I mentioned earlier. Would you want to go?" he asked hopefully. "I'd feel so much better if you did."

That caught Tasha's attention. "You would?" she asked her voice choking up slightly.

"Well, yeah, of course. You're one of my best friends. Why wouldn't I want you to go?" he asked nudging her with his elbow.

"Oh, right," She tried to hide the crushing disappointment she was feeling. "Sure, I'd love to come." She smiled.

"I'll pick you up at eight-thirty then?" Storm asked, his eyes lighting up.

Tasha nodded; her smile a little more genuine this time. "Okay, I can't wait!"

"I'll catch you later?" Storm asked. Tasha nodded mutely and Storm stepped forward and hugged her again. "You're an amazing girl." he whispered in her ear. Storm pulled back. "Bye, Tasha." he said swiftly heading off into the sea of bodies and quickly disappearing.

"Bye… Storm." she murmured wistfully once he'd disappeared.

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	5. Five

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Coincidence

_Ring!  
><em>_Ring!  
><em>_Ring!_

Emerald groaned, rolled over in her bed and picked up the phone. She fumbled with it a bit, her eyes blurry, her head pounding in pain, before finally getting it to her ear.

"You're six-thirty wake-up call, Miss Song." a man's voice came through the speaker.

"Thanks." she grumbled hanging up the phone and rolling over. She could afford ten more minutes, right?

Twenty minutes later, Emerald forced herself up and quickly hopped into the shower, afterward slipping on boot-cut jeans, her gray t-shirt that said, SARCASM: THE BODY'S NATURAL DEFENSE AGAINST STUPID. She, then, swiftly french-braided her hair, grabbed her backpack and skateboard, and threw the door open, almost crashing into Alecia.

"Oh!" Emerald exclaimed stumbling back not expecting her to be standing there.

"Sorry, I would've called but I knew that you'd be heading to school soon, so I thought I'd just come over and see you because you would be heading out to get to school." Alecia babbled the words coming out of her mouth in one long sentence. "I'm sorry if I startled you, I really didn't meant to—"

"What do you want?" Emerald asked bluntly, interrupting Alecia.

"What? Oh! Yes, the reason I came here." Alecia laughed. "I wanted to give you these." She held out three tickets. Emerald looked at them heedfully. "Go ahead, take them."

"What are they for?" Emerald asked.

"Well, our family is holding a family masquerade ball. I know you felt left out last night, so I wanted to invite you to this." Alecia explained holding the tickets out farther. "The two extra are if you wanted to invite any friends of yours, or something. It's a masquerade so don't forget to wear a mask, and there'll be children so wear something appropriate." she added quickly.

Emerald hesitantly took them. "Thanks." she mumbled throwing them into her backpack and stepping out. Today was one of those days where she was glad that the door automatically locked. "Well, I have to get to school now, so… I'll see you later." Emerald told Alecia awkwardly. "Um, thanks again." she added before heading off to the elevators.

The ride down was silently uncomfortable and the "goodbye's" worse. But finally Emerald was free to board down the streets of Manhattan and get to school, hoping she wasn't going to be late. She was trying to stay in this school like she'd promised Alan.

It was good she'd lived here all her life because of all the almost, empty sidewalk shortcuts she was able to take to get to school quicker.

She entered the doors just as the bell rang.

* * *

><p>"Where were you this morning?" Carter asked during lunch.<p>

"Oh, I got held back by Alecia." Emerald said flippantly. "She just wanted to give me something."

"Ooo, what was it?" Carter asked the embers in her eyes blazing with curiosity.

"No, I'd rather not—" Emerald objected afraid that if Carter found out she'd drag her to the masquerade.

"Show me! Show me! Show me!" Carter chanted. "Please!" she pouted.

"I-it-it was just a…" Emerald looked around trying to think of something. "…a-a-a a new skateboard!"

Carter pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow. "I know you're lying."

"What? Why would you say that?" Emerald asked playing it a little too much.

"You're lips are moving." her friend replied as soon as the words were out of Emerald's mouth. "Now, are you going to show me, or do I have to raid your backpack for it?" she asked calmly holding her hand out.

Emerald and Carter had a stare down before finally, without breaking the eye contact, Emerald reached for her backpack and took out the crumpled, crushed tickets and laid them into Carter's open palm.

After another moment of staring, Carter held them up to read.

"Oh my God!" she squealed making Emerald. "No way! I can't believe this! How did you get these tickets?"

"Whoa, whoa, what's going on?" Mackenzie asked, holding her hands up and motioning for Carter to calm down.

Carter turned toward Mackenzie.

"Emerald has three tickets to that Masquerade at the Marriott!" she informed before turning back to Emerald. "How did you get these?"

"I told you… Alecia." Emerald said a little uneasily. That was exactly why she hadn't wanted to tell Carter. She may have loved skateboarding but she was such a girly-girl when it came to things like dances and make-up.

Carter was grinning from ear to ear, her eyes on fire. "Well, one for you, one for me, and one for… Anthony…?" she asked hopefully.

"Um, well, I was actually thinking maybe Mackenzie would like to go." Emerald suggested.

"What?" Mackenzie exclaimed. "No, I—" she started, but stopped when she met Emerald's pleading eyes. "Oh, yeah, just us girls." She plastered a smile on her face. "Think of it as… a bachelorette party! You're last night before you get a boyfriend, huh?"

Carter's fire died a little, but she was still excited. "Sure. I'm so sorry I didn't invite you first."

"Oh, hey, it's not problem. I totally understand." Mackenzie said. Emerald looked grateful at her.

"Thank you." she mouthed.

Mackenzie's eyes narrowed. "You owe me." she mouthed back. Emerald smiled knowing that she'd hold her up to that.

Carter handed out the tickets and then continued to talk with Mackenzie about clothes and shoes and make-up they'd wear to the masquerade.

Emerald turned toward Dan.

"Here, I don't want it." she said shoving into his hands.

He shoved it back. "What happened to that whole 'bachelorette' party thing?" he asked.

Emerald made a face and shoved it back at him. "Well, I'm sure it'll be fine if you go."

Danny once again shoved it back. "Uh, no."

Emerald took it and held it out to him. "I am begging you!" she groaned. "I would pay you to go for me."

Danny's eyes narrowed. "How much dough are we talking about?"

Emerald shrugged. "Twenty."

"Sixty"

"Thirty-five."

"Fifty"

"Thirty-five, fifty."

"Forty."

"Thirty-nine, ninety-five."

Danny smiled. "Sorry, even if I wanted to, I couldn't go. I have a prior family commitment. But I'll still take the cash."

Emerald glared at her friend and hit him on the side of the head. He started laughing.

"Not funny, Danny." she huffed crossing her arms haughtily which made Danny laugh harder.

Great. Now she was stuck with this ticket and there was no possible way that she could get out of going. Carter was very persistent and, unless Emerald was dying, Carter would drag her, kicking and screaming, to the ballroom.

* * *

><p>Emerald needed to cool off. The best place for her was the library or the bookstore (that is if she had enough money to actually buy a book). Borders was having a mega-sale because they were being foreclosed, so Emerald took advantage of this and headed down there.<p>

At the end of the day, she skateboarded home to drop her school stuff off and then went about 20 (give or take) blocks to Borders. The feeling wasn't exactly calm, like Emerald had been hoping because she was sad to see Borders close. She'd grown up with Borders, and felt as if she was losing a best friend. It was nice that, though people were rushing around also taking advantage of the deals, they were always quiet. It helped clear her head and concentrate if she needed to. She strapped her board to the back of bag, and headed straight to the HORROR section. It was true, she was a horror junkie.

She sifted through all the titles and authors, looking for something new to read. Almost all shelves were empty with books scattered everywhere. Neatly, but they weren't organized their usual way.

After scanning that shelf, nothing catching her attention there, she moved to another, looking for _something_. It seemed that she was a little late on the draw. All the good books had been taken off the shelves already.

Emerald started to chew her lip. This was supposed to be helping her relax, but all she was feeling right now was frustration and wariness.

Finally though, she found a couple books, actually, that looked good and came at a good price.

By the time she was done she was holding a large Borders bag with all the books she's splurged on. Maybe a little more than she had meant to spend, but when you're favorite bookstore is going out of business it's hard not to buy a book on impulse. Her tally? Three box sets and seven other separate books.

Feeling relaxed and content she hopped onto her skateboard and started to make her way home, taking the shortcuts so she wouldn't piss off the happy hour traffic. She'd been in too many fights before to know that it wasn't a good idea to blow through the sidewalks when other people, who are tired and hungry, are trying to get home.

After ten blocks or so, though, as she was turning a corner she noticed a boy heading straight toward her. His head was down, and he wasn't paying attention. But she was going too fast to stop. All she had time to do was yell, "Look out!"

The boy looked up and they collided.

Emerald's skateboard slipped from underneath her as she fell forward, the boy losing his balance and falling back. He let out a grunt as they both hit the ground. Emerald managed to catch herself with her hands, before she fell on top of the boy.

They were so close that their breath, in the cool air, visibly mingled. Emerald's hair fell around the boy's face like a black, silky veil. Both were breathing hard.

For a moment Emerald was too dazed to move. This boy was cute, to say the least. His eyes were wide, gorgeous electric blue that sparked and flashed like lightning in a thunderstorm. His hair was thick, wavy, and an odd, dark cherry wood color, and—from what Emerald could tell, with his hair brushing her fingers—was extremely soft and absolutely splendid.

Emerald's breath caught, weird feelings flooding up through her, making her hands tingle, her heart pound, her stomach do somersaults. Then the feeling of some kind of familiarity came over her, looking into those piercing blue eyes.

Her eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"Do I…" she started hesitantly. "Have we…" She faltered again, not wanting to sound rude.

"Know you?" the boy finished for her, his voice smooth and languid. "Met before?"

Emerald nodded.

"I don't think so."

"Oh, okay."

There was a pause.

"Um, do you mind…?" the boy spoke lifting his head slightly.

"Oh," Emerald's ears turned pink. "Oh, right. I'm sorry." she apologized, getting off of him. Looking around she remembered what had happened. Her skateboard had rolled off back around the corner, and her books were scattered around, opened, on their sides, standing. "Oh, oh no." She stood grabbed her half-empty bag and got back down on her knees to collect the novels.

The boy started to help.

"I'm sorry," he said handing the books. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

Emerald gratefully took them from him. "Well, you can't take all the blame. I really shouldn't be going that fast." she chuckled. "But there usually aren't people on these streets."

"Except for the occasional gangster." the boy commented looking at Emerald with furrowed eyebrows. "Are you safe going down these streets?" he asked, looking at her and slowly holding out another one of her books.

Emerald smiled and took the book. "I don't believe that is any of _your_ business." told him standing up and getting her board. She hurriedly went back to pick up the rest of her books.

"Three Days Grace, huh?" the boy asked gesturing with his chin to the earrings Emerald was wearing.

Emerald tried not to smile, and self-consciously brushed her hair back behind her ear.

"You noticed?" She was kind of surprised.

"I didn't know they made earrings."

"I had them specially made."

The boy's eyebrows rose. "Oh?"

"I know a guy." Emerald answered with a coy smile.

They both stood up. Emerald shoved the books she had into the bag. The boy held out the books he'd picked up and she took them, also throwing them into the bag.

"Thanks. Again, I'm terribly sorry about that." she apologized again.

The boy shrugged. "No blood, no foul."

"Don't you mean, 'harm'?" she asked.

The boy smiled getting a strange glint in his electrifying eyes, making Emerald's stomach twist. "Is there a difference?"

"Storm." he introduced holding his hand out.

"Emerald." she replied taking it.

Electric zings raced up her arm when she made contact with his skin. Gasping she jerked her hand away and looked up at him. He looked just as miffed.

"Uh… um… s-sorry—" Emerald broke off, not sure what to say. "I'll… just be… going now." she stuttered, pointing to the direction she'd been heading before they crashed, and sidling by. A few steps in, however, and Storm jogged up next to her.

"What would it take for a not-so-total stranger to get to know more than just your name?" he asked, keeping pace perfectly with Emerald, even though all her friends complained she walked too fast.

She stopped and smiled at him. "You're trying too hard." she told him truthfully.

Storm's eyebrows arched. "Am I?" A smile was pulling the edges of his lips.

"You're sweet guy, Storm." Emerald said, reaching out to pat him on the shoulder, but thinking better of it and pulling back at the last moment.

"Are you breaking up with me?" he asked disbelievingly. How sad was that? Getting dumped when you weren't even going out. When you'd just met her!

"You could say that." Emerald said lightly, nodding. "But, listen," She took a step closer to him, they were inches apart. "It was nice meeting you. Call me sometime." Before he could say anything she pulled back and walked off.

"I don't have your number!" he called, throwing his hands in the air.

Emerald looked at him over her shoulder, smiled and winked, before throwing her skateboard down and hopping on. She knew he'd find the note she's slipped into his pocket—when she'd gotten super close—sooner or later.

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	6. Six

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Façade

Carter and Mackenzie were probably the only ones who knew that Emerald lived in the Marriott. Because she knew that she could trust them. It was just Emerald didn't really want anyone knowing that she lived on her own. It'd give her attention. And attention to Emerald, positive or negative, was torture. She absolutely _hated_ attention.

Both of them came to Emerald's suite at exactly eight-thirty. It was kind of scary how punctual Carter was sometimes.

"Oh, no," Carter said pushing Emerald back into her suite. "You are _not_ going to the masquerade dressed like that." Carter walked in followed by Mackenzie who were both wearing dresses whereas Emerald was wearing some generic, plain black dress.

Carter looked stunning, kind of like a princess, in her spaghetti strap, black dress. A large ribbon with gold, flower designs wrapped around her stomach, the skirt of the dress stopping just below the knees, slightly poofy, with the same gold designs as the ribbon. She wore glittering gold, dress heeled, sandals that really helped her look like a very prim, proper, sophisticated princess. Her mask was also gold with some white feathers on the left side.

"This is the best dress I could find. Can't we just leave it and go now?" Emerald groaned as Carter opened her closet up and started sifting through her clothes.

"Well you want to look stunning don't you?" Carter asked her eyebrows rising.

"I don't need a boyfriend." Emerald responded flatly, reading between the lines.

"It's a very up-there masquerade though, you want to look nice for all the elites. It shows them that you are mature and you respect them, too." Mackenzie chimed in.

She was wearing a strapless pink dress that accented her bust area and waist. The lowest part of the skirt went down to just below her knees and shortened diagonally as it went up, the shortest part stopping mid-thigh. If you looked close enough it would scintillate when the light hit her just right. And it really brought out her golden brown highlights, almost making them look blond. Her heels were about two inches high, silver, evening sandals. Her mask matched her heels and had a chrome-colored rose on the right side.

It was kind of shocking for Emerald to see her friend wearing a dress and heels. It was kind of creepy too. Like the world was going to end.

"You know, I've been thinking," Emerald started.

"Mm-hmm," Carter replied, still sifting.

"You should call Anthony, I'll give him my ticket, and then I won't have to go anymore. How does that sound?" she suggested.

Both Carter and Mackenzie turned to glare at her.

"No way. Besides, Anthony made plans since he couldn't come." Carter still sounded a little bitter about that.

"Yeah, and you're the one who got me into this." Mackenzie said. "I'm not going to let you get off, leaving me still having to go."

Emerald sighed heavily just as Carter let out a frustrated, half-squeal, half-groan. "Do you have _any_ other dresses in here?" she queried spinning around to face Emerald. Emerald shrugged and smiled smugly at Carter. "All I see are skirts and none of them fit the occasion!" she exclaimed throwing her hands up in the air.

"Oh, well," Emerald mock sighed. "I guess I'll just go in this." She hopped off the bed but Carter caught her arm.

"Not so fast." she growled. "I _know_ you have a dress in there somewhere. Where are you hiding them?"

Emerald looked at her with wide, innocent eyes. "Why, I have no idea what you are talking about, my dear friend, Carter."

Carter's grip tightened on her arm and she continued to glare at Emerald. "Mackenzie, go check…" She trailed off looking around the room trying to think of where Emerald would hide her dresses. Being her friend, she knew she'd only have a few, therefore didn't need a lot of space to hide them. But she wouldn't hide them in the obvious places that Carter would think to look.

Her eyes caught the bed and Carter smiled wickedly. "Check under the mattress."

Emerald narrowed her eyes and glared daggers at her, now smug, friend. She let out a frustrated hiss.

Carter release Emerald's arm as Mackenzie grunted, pushing the mattress off part of the bed. Sure enough there was one of the dresses that Emerald owned. With the help of Carter they flipped her mattress over and there lay, flattened, about five dresses.

"Now," Carter panted, catching her breath. "We'd better choose quickly so we have enough time to get to the masquerade."

With a mental groan, Emerald fell into a chair and watched in misery as Carter and Mackenzie listed the pros and cons of the dresses. Then they'd come over to where Emerald was sitting and hang it around her neck and scrutinize and talk more about it. It was absolutely agonizing! She felt like she was dying, or that they were going to spend all night doing this and never make it to the ball (which was actually good for Emerald, in a way).

But looking at the clock, it had only been about ten minutes. Emerald couldn't repress the groan of pure agony that rose in her throat and escaped from her lips. Thankfully, Carter and Mackenzie looked too stumped to noticed.

"None of these are going to work!" Carter griped. "How can that be?"

Emerald's lips turned up slightly.

"Wait, wait," Mackenzie said examining the mattress they'd pushed, off carefully. Emerald's smile dropped and she prayed with all her might that she wouldn't find—"Well, would you look at this!" Mackenzie exclaimed pulling out another dress.

Carter squealed and Emerald buried her head in her hands.

"It's perfect!" she exclaimed.

"No," Emerald moaned.

"Yes," Carter whispered her eyes bright as a forest fire.

Emerald shook her head. "No." she said again with more conviction.

"Yes!" both Carter and Mackenzie declared.

Fed up with all this back-and-forth nonsense, Carter stomped over to Emerald and pried her hands away from her face before dropping the dress in her hands. "No more debate." Carter said roughly grabbing her dark-haired friend's arm, pulling her out of the chair and promptly shoving her into the bathroom. Before Emerald could gather her bearings Carter pulled the door closed. "I'm not letting you come out until you put that dress on!"

"Then I guess we'll be here all night!" Emerald shouted back, refusing to change.

"Emerald," Mackenzie called. "We can do this hard way, or my way."

"You guys don't scare me."

"Emerald!" Carter whined. "Don't ruin the fun! Just take a chance for once in your life! Don't be afraid to leap! You can't go on living like this!"

Emerald tried not to let those words get to her, but they did. She felt like such a dud, always afraid to do anything. But she had a good reason to. A reason that not even Carter knew. No one knew, _but_ her…. Well, at least the people currently surrounding her; there were people from her past that she knew, knew what happened.

She always seemed to get hurt when she took a risk. That's why she stopped taking them in the first place!

But something, something deep inside her, whispered a desire: a longing to go to because something amazing was waiting for her. It was kind of nightmarish, but the feeling, in contrast, was warm and nice. Emerald didn't think that she'd ever felt this before. It made her heart pound, her face flush and her breath became slightly ragged.

_Pull yourself together, you idiot!_ The cold voice of reason blew through her mind, halting all those weird feelings in their tracks and pushing them down.

With a sigh Emerald slowly got ready, finishing everything off with a plain black mask.

Carter and Mackenzie were waiting just outside the door, Carter with a pair of heels in her hands. She almost dropped them, though when Emerald stepped out. Both their mouths dropped to the floor.

"You changed your—" Carter started.

"I know." Emerald interrupted.

"And your—" Mackenzie pointed.

"Yeah." Emerald, she cut her friend off. She took the heels out of Carter's hands, sat down and slipped them on. She stood up again.

"Okay," Emerald muttered a little darkly. "Let's get going before I change my mind."

* * *

><p>"You ready?" Christian asked when Storm opened the door.<p>

"Yeah, yeah, let's just get this over with." he muttered stepping out and locking the door.

"Where's your mask?" his friend asked.

Storm took it out and put it on.

"Ah, nice choice, the ladies will go crazy over that." he laughed.

Storm rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's go pick Tasha up." he said heading toward the garage.

"I totally take back what I said then." Christian followed quickly. "You can't pick up girls if you've already got a girlfriend!"

"She's not my girlfriend. She just happens to a friend that's a girl. She's a… a… a gal-friend." Storm explained slipping into the car. Christian swiftly copied knowing that if he took too long Storm would leave without him.

"Yeah, but still, if won't look good if you go in with a girl." Christian stated shaking his head sadly.

"Get out." Storm said glaring at his friend.

"Oh, don't be that way. I was only joking." The glare didn't lessen. "You seriously need to have a sense of humor, man."

"You're lucky I'm even coming with you to this stupid thing." Storm growled backing out of the garage.

"I'm surprised you haven't backed out yet." Christian remarked.

"Well, I've already invited Tasha. She needs to get out of that house of hers." Storm muttered. Christian opened his mouth but Storm glowered at him. "Say another word and I swear I'll kick you out and make you walk to the Marriott." Christian closed his mouth again. "Wise decision."

Storm knocked on Tasha's door. Christian was waiting in the car.

Aunt Jodi answered. She looked at him with contempt. "She's upstairs. Probably hiding in her closet like the infant she is." she directed in a sour tone before walking off into the living room.

"Thank you, Miss Redfern." Storm mumbled politely stepping in, closing the door, and heading up to Tasha's room.

She flinched when he opened the closet door.

He knelt down next to her. "It's okay, it's just me." he assured in a quiet voice. "We don't have to go if you don't feel like it."

Tasha stood up. "Oh, no, I still want to go. I need to get out of this house."

Storm stepped back to allow room for her to step out of the closet.

"You look magnificent." he commented smiling.

Tasha was wearing a velvet royal blue dress that went down to her knees. It had lavish, French designs on the top of the dress, thinning as it went down the middle, stopping at about mid-thigh. It also had the same designs on the small sleeves. Only someone like her could pull off wearing a vintage dress in the 21st century. Her shoes were rose petal-pink (just like her eyes) flats with a rose on the end. Her hair was pulled back into a Bohemian-fishtail braid. The mask she was going to wear was just plain and silver.

Tasha's eyes lit up when he said that.

"Thanks," she muttered biting her lip, blushing slightly.

Storm held out his hand a warm smile on his face. "Come on, we should get going."

* * *

><p>Even in stillness she was something to look at. She wore a flattering strapless red dress that stopped just above her knees. The skirt of the dress, which was ruffled, was separated by a red ribbon tied in a bow and put off slightly to her left. It was simple, yet elegant, and made her look older and more mature.<p>

The dress and medium brown, short, curled hair really emphasized her pale skin. And, even in the dim light of the ballroom, her skin was that of ivory and vanilla. Today her eyes were a soft forest green, with an outline of moss green on the outside of her irises. Her long, extravagant legs were stretched out, ankles crossed.

"Fancy meeting you here." a familiar voice said from behind.

The girl turned with a sly smile, her eyes smoky.

"Yes, it sure is." she replied sarcastically, as he walked around the chair.

"What, no stilettos to stab with?" he asked not failing to notice her shoes tonight: black, with an inch-and-a-half, wide heel, and a small satin bow on the tip.

She rolled her eyes. "This isn't exactly the occasion."

"Care to dance?" he asked holding his hand out as the song, "So Close" by Jon Mclaughlin, started to play.

She pursed her lips. "Why not?" She finally agreed, taking his hand.

In one swift movement, he pulled her out of her chair, putting one hand on the small of her back, and held her left hand firmly in his right. She slowly put her free hand on his shoulder.

"Mister Smooth today, are we?" she asked as they twirled onto the dance floor and swayed to the music.

The Reaper merely smiled and said, "You're looking especially stunning tonight." he complimented. "You're hair changed, though."

"Wig." the Vigilante informed.

"Of course, I should've known."

"A fedora to a masquerade? Really? I'm disappointed in you." she continued. He was wearing a different kind from the last night they'd met (his hair was still the same curly, golden-brown).

The Reaper cocked an eyebrow. "You want me to take it off? I'm not hiding anything."

"No, it suits you." she told him grudgingly.

The Reaper smiled. "That's what I thought."

"Can I ask you something?" she spoke after a moment of silence.

"Shoot."

"That night, in the alley… why didn't you kill me?"

When he didn't answer for a while she looked up at him. Today his eyes were a shocking steely gray. They looked deep in thought. But as the time passed and they continued to dance, she figured he hadn't heard her, or just wasn't going to answer that specific question.

He spun her out and when she twirled back in, he held her closer to him; wrapping his arm completely around her waist, and pressing her to him. Her heart rose into her throat where it sat there, thumping, and those weird fuzzy, warm feelings resurfaced as his smoldering gray eyes met her own. She became hyper aware of his strong arm around her waist and how his hand in hers felt… wonderful.

Their faces were so close together any closer and they'd be kissing.

"I'll tell you when I have the answer." he finally told her quietly, his breath blowing into her face, making her dizzy and dazed.

They stared at each other for another moment and she thought for sure they were going to kiss. Thankfully, one of the parents there came up to them.

"Keep it G, you two." he said in a low voice. "There are children here."

She smiled and nodded, looking at him. "Of course."

The song ended.

The Vigilante stepped back, taking control of those emotions and pushing them down. He was a vampire that killed her kind, the kind _just-like-her_; she couldn't afford to lose it with him. To think what would happen if she did! This was probably how he did kill them. Charming them and gaining their trust before snapping their necks.

"We can't keep doing this." she told him calmly, keeping her eyes frozen over. "The next time we meet one of us isn't leaving alive."

The Reaper stepped forward, took her hand, and kissed the top. "As you wish." he said smiling.

She ripped her hand out of his, gritting her teeth, her hand feeling warm and tingly from his touch.

"If you'll excuse me," she said crisply before turning her heel and walking off. The Reaper chuckled as he watched her go.

**Hope you enjoyed!**** Visuals on my website/Hope Page (link should be at the top of my profile).**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	7. Seven

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Misery

Storm drove up to Tasha's house. Something was wrong. He knew it. He didn't even bother locking his 200,000 dollar car. He didn't even remove the keys. He stopped the car, turned it off and jumped out, running up the concrete walkway that led to the front door.

Storm pounded his fist against the door just as Jodi roared, "You had better come back here you worthless brat!"

Growling he took a step back and kicked the door open—the deadbolt ripping away from the frame, taking a good chunk with it—before launching himself up the stairs. Storm got to Tasha's door as he heard Jodi hiss, "There you are, you wicked girl!"

He opened the door just as Jodi threw Tasha to the floor and hit her three times with a long, thin, wooden stick. Tasha cried out in pain, making Storm's heart lurch in his chest. And before Jodi could hit her anymore, he jumped in front, his arms outstretched, shielding Tasha.

"That's enough." he told her in a dangerously low voice.

Jodi sneered. "You think I'm scared of you, boy?" She raised the stick, bringing it down as fast as a cobra's strike.

Storm caught this easily however, because of the fact that he was now fuming. He ripped the stick from Jodi's hands and easily snapped it two, holding one of the jagged ends up to Tasha's Aunt's throat.

"I suggest you leave, _now_. And if you _ever_ touch Tasha again, you'll wake up with this very piece of wood sticking out of your heart. Got it?" he warned.

Jodi's chest heaved and she glared daggers at Storm, but didn't say a word or move. So, he pressed the splintered stick deeper into her neck. Finally with one last contempt look she spun around and walked out, like nothing had happened. Storm waited for a moment making sure that Jodi wasn't going to come back. He dropped the stick, turned and knelt down next to Tasha.

She was trembling and whimpered when Storm got close.

"It's just me." he murmured quietly. "It's Storm."

As soon as he said this, Tasha threw herself into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and started sobbing into his shoulder. He held her firmly to him for a few moments before Tasha pulled back to look up.

Storm's breath caught when he saw her. She had a large bruise on her face, tears stained her cheeks, and her eyes looked fractured, broken. He pulled her in close and kissed your forehead.

"Can you stand?" he asked quietly after another few moments of silence.

Tasha sniffled and wiped some of her tears away. "Yeah, I think so." she mumbled miserably.

Slowly, Storm helped her up.

"I want to get your bag and pack anything that has value to you." he quickly ordered.

Tasha shook her head. "No, I-I can't—"

"You're eighteen now, she can't keep you here. You don't have to stay here." Storm interrupted.

"Where will I go?" she asked tears forming in her eyes again.

"With me, of course."

Tasha shook her head again, her tears spilling over. "No, I couldn't burden you like that."

Storm grabbed Tasha's arm. "I love you like family. I can't leave you here any longer. It's killing me to see you like this! Please, my home is your home." They stared at each other before Tasha finally nodded.

"Okay, okay, just let me… get my stuff." she murmured looking around her room. She moved toward her closet and pulled out a black suitcase. Storm stood guard as Tasha swiftly packed up the most important things that she owned. When she was done, Storm grabbed her hand and led her down the hallway and stairs, on high alert, making sure that Jodi didn't have anything planned.

Thankfully, nothing happened and Storm and Tasha got to his car safely.

* * *

><p>"Hey," Tasha bumped Storm's shoulder with hers. Storm blinked and looked over at her.<p>

They were sitting inside a diner. Before this though, they'd stopped at Storm's house to drop off Tasha's things, but neither of them wanted to be cooped up in that empty house. It just felt… lonely and claustrophobic.

Tasha was feeling a lot better now and despite the bruise on her face, she was smiling and her eyes were alight with joy. That was one of the many traits Storm liked about Tasha. She bounced back quickly, and was also very optimistic.

"Are you listening to me?" she asked, trying not to let the hurt show through.

"I'm sorry." Storm's eyebrows furrowed. "I… have a lot on my mind right now."

Tasha looked down at the hands in her lap, biting her lip. "Well, I was just wondering… I mean, today _is_ my birthday after all… I was just wondering…." Tasha sighed. "Oh, just forget it." She turned to look out the window.

Storm put a hand on her shoulder.

"Why don't we celebrate your birthday then?" he asked. Tasha turned back to look at him, still chewing on her lip. "Just you and me."

"Would you… want to, maybe… go out tonight to celebrate?" she asked looking down embarrassed.

Storm let his hand fall from her shoulder. "Tasha, you know we agreed—"

Tasha's head snapped up, her pink eyes wide as a doe's. "No! No!" she objected in her soft, soprano voice. "That came out all wrong. I merely meant that we could hang out as friends. Uh, go see a movie. Or, walk around town. We don't even have to watch a movie. We could just talk, catch up—" She broke off and blushed when Storm rested his hand gently on hers.

Storm smiled and squeezed her hand gently. "I'd love that. We can see a movie, then walk around town a little, maybe."

A cheery smile broke across Tasha's face. She started talking about what movies were out and what they could go see, but Storm unintentionally zoned out again. He couldn't get his mind off of that girl.

Emerald.

What a nice name. She was so confident, stood tall; voice was loud, clear, concise. He just loved that about her.

"Storm!" Tasha's frustrated voice came, jolting him out of his thoughts.

He quickly turned to look at her. "Tasha—" he tried.

"It's that girl, isn't it?" she asked irritated. "She's _human_, Storm. It's illegal. I'm not going to stand by and watch you get yourself killed!" Tasha's eyes softened and she took his hands into both of hers. "I care about you too much."

Storm smiled gently. "I know. Thank you. But there's just… something about her…." He trailed off, pulling his hands from hers.

Tasha sighed dismally and rested her hands in her lap. "You _don't_ know then." she murmured so quiet, he couldn't catch it. She looked back at Storm. Knowing him all these years, she knew that she wouldn't be able to sway him from the path he decides to take. The best she could do now was try to support him when she could and enjoy the moments they were together.

"We still on for tonight?" she asked hopefully.

"Of course," Storm said nodding and grinning. "I wouldn't miss it for the world." He stood. "Listen, I have to get going, but how does seven sound for the movie?" Tasha nodded, afraid if she spoke that she'd start crying. "Good, I'll see you then." And, with that, Storm made his way to the door.

Tasha smiled, a bit of sadness leaking through, as she watched him walk through the crowds and down the street. "Can't wait." she murmured, letting one of her tears slip from the corner of her eye.

* * *

><p>Storm looked at the crumpled paper in his hand that had Emerald's number on it. How she had slipped it into his pocket without his notice was baffling to him. But now he could call her and this excited him… probably more than it should have. It was just… something about this girl was so <em>enticing<em>. She had him hooked, and they'd only met once.

He went to the nearest payphone because—believe it or not—Storm didn't own a cell. Yeah, it was pretty crazy to think about. What eighteen-year-old didn't have a cell phone? Storm just didn't see the point in owning one… well, up until now at least.

"Took you long enough." Emerald said when she picked up.

"How'd you know it was me?" Storm asked, chuckling. This girl ceased to amaze him.

"Four people know this number, including you." she answered. Storm didn't think it was much of an answer, but it'd have to do for now. "Need something?" she said her tone of voice hard to decipher.

"Uh, yeah, I… wanted to… see you again." he stuttered.

"A huh," Emerald prompted.

"Would you like to hang out for an hour or two, maybe?" he invited.

"Right now?"

Storm looked at his watch. "Yeah, if that works for you."

"Sure, meet me outside the Marriott on East 48th Street."

The line went dead. Storm hung up the phone slowly, slightly startled. Such a strange girl….

_What am I getting myself into?_ Storm asked himself as he hailed a cab.

She was waiting for him when the cab drove up. Storm absentmindedly threw money into the front seat and hopped out.

"So, where to?" she asked as he came into earshot.

"I don't know, where would you like to go?" he inquired.

Emerald smiled and shook her head. "Man up, pretty boy." she said, strutting past Storm. "Well, are you coming, or not?" she called over her shoulder when she realized he wasn't following. Shaking his head, he jogged up to her. She sure was something.

"I was simply being… gentlemanly." he explained when he'd come into step with her, but made sure to keep a few feet away, not wanting to be shocked again. He'd gone through enough in one night.

Emerald pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes.

"You're different than the rest." he commented.

"And damn proud of it." she stated grinning.

They walked for a while, aimlessly, around town. The sun started to set, setting the city on fire. It was almost magical. And even then though they were still a few feet away, those cozy, easing feelings resurfaced and Storm became hyperaware of Emerald. How the cool evening breeze ruffled some of her ebony curls, her heart beating at a slightly unsteady pace, how her teeth dug into the soft flesh of her full, natural rosy lips.

Oh, Storm wondered, what it would feel like if his were to be pressed up against hers.

"Well, if it isn't our favorite human lover!" someone hollered. Both Storm and Emerald turned to see a group of five guys coming toward them. They hadn't watched where they were walking and wandered into a dangerous part of town. The streets were totally empty as the sun started setting; the air growing cooler.

Storm cussed under his breath.

"Now's not a good time guys." he growled walking up to meet them. The leader of the group, Todd, snickered.

"I see you've found a snack." He grinned stupidly, eyeing Emerald. "Mind if I take a bite?" he asked stepping forward.

Storm's hand shot out, planting firmly on Todd's chest as he stepped in front of him.

"Yes, I mind." he warned darkly.

"Oooo," the group laughed and mocked.

"You're outnumbered here. One-to-five." Todd spat, getting into Storm's face. "I wouldn't do anything stupid if I were you, _vermin_-lover."

"Storm, who are these guys?" Emerald asked her voice tight.

Storm was too busy staring down Todd to answer. His jaw was working, his muscles tight.

"Just walk away." Storm ordered through gritted teeth.

"No can do," Todd said shrugging, trying to step forward again. Storm threw a right hook and his other goons swarmed around Storm. He disappeared in a pile of bodies for a moment before reappearing, on his knees, his face contorted in a mask of pain and rage.

One of the guys holding him pulled out a dagger from Storm's shoulder; the blade having been replaced by wood.

Todd smiled at Storm, wiping his bloody lip, before turning to face Emerald.

"Don't you touch her!" Storm snarled, lunging up. The two others caught him and wrestled him down.

"Make another move and I'd be happy to stab you again." the one advised.

"You're a cute one, aren't you?" Todd asked reaching up to brush his fingers across her cheek. Glaring coldly at him, Emerald slapped his hand away.

"Emerald," Storm warned, afraid that she'd get hurt or worse if she pissed Todd off.

She didn't seem to hear. "Don't you dare touch me." she hissed.

"You're a feisty one, aren't you?" Todd asked amused by her antics.

Emerald slapped him.

The two other free cohorts started for her, but Todd waved them down. He smiled cruelly and slowly walked up to her. "Such a pretty face we have here." he admired, roughly taking her chin.

She swatted his hand away again and took a step back, but Todd tripped her and she fell back with a yelp.

Todd's eyes flashed wickedly, his smile turning into a malicious grin.

"Todd!" Storm roared. He tried to get up again, chopping one of the guys in the stomach, but was stabbed and subdued again.

"If you don't struggle, it won't hurt." Todd suggested staring down at Emerald, as his eyes flooded with silver, his canines elongated to a sharp point. Emerald's heart raced in her chest and she scrambled back. Bad choice because her back hit the brick wall not a moment later.

Storm started to struggle again, but his attempts were meager because of his stab wounds.

Todd knelt down and closed the distance between himself and Emerald. He leaned forward slowly, enjoying the fear in his prey's eyes. The sound of her speeding heart. How the veins in her neck pulsed.

"Try anything stupid and I'll kill you and your boyfriend over there." he growled softly in Emerald's ear. Her stomach tightened into a painful knot as she felt his hot breath on her neck. She grunted as Todd reached up and knotted his hand in her hair, and sucked in a sharp breath as his teeth pierced her flesh.

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See at the Millennium!**


	8. Eight

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Break

Storm picked the limp girl up into his arms. He made sure to not make contact with her bare skin, but even so, his heart beat irregularly in his chest, it became harder to breath, the hair on his arms rose, and he could feel the heat of her body seep into his. All the pain from his wounds seemed to just melt away.

Storm took a deep breath and shook himself. What was happening? This wasn't natural; these feeling weren't natural, especially because of the fact that she was human! It didn't make any sense. He barely liked humans, let alone—dare he say it?—love them.

Right.

She was just a person that, for some reason, interested him more than it should have.

Yeah, that was a good explanation….

Sighing dejectedly, Storm continued back to the Marriot. It was a little hard to convince the woman at the front desk to give him Emerald's room number. Several times her hand would twitch to the phone as if to call 911. But finally, with a little persuasion, he got the room number out of her and headed up, with Emerald still unconscious in his arms.

Storm gently laid her down on one of the beds, some of her hair brushing his fingertips. A shiver ran through him at its touch. Soft as silk; shimmering with, not only, jet-black, but also, when the light caught it, bits of auburn and ruby red.

_Pull yourself together, man,_ he thought calmly taking a step back.

Storm looked at the clock. It was past seven. Tasha was no doubt fretting now and would be full on worried any minute. He had to get going, but…. He looked back down at Emerald.

What if she knew? If she found out? He'd be putting her in more danger than he thought she could really handle. She seemed so fragile, delicate; she reminded him of an orchid. A white orchid, that radiated beauty and innocence. He could never put her in the path of the kind of danger the Night World would bring.

Storm's eyes flickered back to the clock once again. But Tasha… and tonight was her birthday celebration. He _couldn't_ miss that. If she ever found out he'd skipped because of a human…. God, that would kill her and he'd never be able to forgive himself.

With one last pained look at Emerald, Storm silently headed for the door.

It was for the best. He knew where she lived and if he had to, he'd come back and erase any memories of what happened tonight.

* * *

><p>"Oh my God!" Tasha exclaimed opening the door. "What happened?" she asked. Storm opened his mouth to reply but Tasha interrupted him. "Never mind, let's get you inside." She helped him in, looked around and then shut the door. Storm stood in the foyer while Tasha went to get a chair for him to sit on. "Okay, what happened?"<p>

"It's nothing. Just some other vampires." Storm assured her.

"Are you sure? Do you want to stay home? We don't have to go to the movies." she told him, but Storm was shaking his head before she had even finished.

"It's your birthday; I promised; we're going." he groaned, shifting in his chair. "Just let me get cleaned up and we'll leave."

Tasha bit her lip.

"Are-are you sure?" she asked one more time.

Storm nodded and gave her a reassuring smile. "I'm sure. I told you, I wouldn't miss this for the world.

"O-okay," she finally agreed, nodding.

After Storm cleaned up they headed over to the theater to watch _Final Destination 5_. If you were ever in the mood to watch gruesome, bloody deaths that was the movie to see. That or the other four.

Afterward they walked around the alleyways of Manhattan talking about random things and just enjoying each other's company. It felt good to just relax for once and not worry about anything else in the world. It was just the two of them, in their own little bubble of ease and happiness.

Unfortunately that bubble was soon popped when they happened across hunters. Well, "happened" is a little too… soft of verb. Assaulted, attacked would better describe what took place, actually.

They were walking past some old, soon-to-be demolished buildings when one of the hunters, who'd been lying in the wait, slammed into Tasha. She let out a surprised yelp, which quickly turned into a snarl, as both the hunter and she hit the ground.

Storm quickly dodged to avoid a different hunter's attack. He turned just as the hunter swung a large, wooden club. Storm easily caught it with his left hand and pulled it toward him. The hunter didn't let go and stumbled forward just as Storm threw his right fist forward striking the hunter square on the nose. It made a satisfying crunch and the hunter went down, club and all.

Storm quickly looked over at Tasha. She'd just thrown off the hunter that had attacked her and was now fighting off another.

Storm heard a hitched breath behind him and turned just in time to duck as a sword whistled over his head. He tried throwing a punch but this hunter was quicker and lunged back. The hunter jabbed, but Storm stepped inside, grabbed the sword's blade, ripped it out of the hunter's hand and slammed the hilt up hitting the hunter's chin.

The hunter went down, but started to get back up again so Storm swung the blade back around hitting the hunter over the head. This time he stayed down. Storm threw the sword across the alleyway and turned back around, looking for Tasha. She had just thrown the hunter she'd been fighting against a wall.

Storm ran toward her and took her hand in his.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

She nodded, but her eyes were wide.

"We should get going before more come." he suggested, walking past her and leading her down the alleyway, scanning ahead to make sure they wouldn't be ambushed again. Tasha let him pull her along, still getting over the shock she was feeling. She'd never been jumped like that before.

"I'm sorry," Storm said slowing and look down an alleyway cautiously. He then turned to look at her. "Not exactly the best birthday, huh?"

Tasha took his hand in both of hers and smiled. "No, actually, I had a great time."

A smile broke across Storm's face. "Good. I'm glad."

"Come on, we should head home." Tasha said tightening her grip on his hand slightly, walking in front of him, and pulling him around the corner only to come face to face with another hunter, or rather, huntress. Thinking quick Storm stepped in front of Tasha, pulling her behind him protectively.

Something happened, though, that broke huntress's concentration because as soon as she saw Storm, her deep violet eyes (quite contrast to her silver-white hair) widened, and she let out a small gasp. Her dagger clattered audibly to the alley floor. Her mouth hung slightly open.

Unfortunately for her Storm had already flung his fist toward her, the only thing in his mind protecting Tasha. He'd never forgive himself if she got hurt or—heaven forbid—died because he was too slow to react.

The side of his fist connected with the huntress's cheek. She let out a startled yelp, causing Storm to wince, and collapsed to the ground, still in shock.

It took Storm a moment to realize that he felt bad for hitting her. Which was way out of character because he hated all hunters. All of them! But this specific hunter…. Just looking down at her made his heart ache and it scared him!

"Come on, before she gets back up!" Tasha whispered pulling him. He stumbled a few feet past before he got control of his body again.

"Wait." he said something tugging at the edges of his memory. This feeling that had arose inside him, roiling like fog, was eerily familiar. His breath caught in his throat as those tender, homey feelings washed over him. His whole body tingled and, with a hitched breath, he realized what was happening. Who this could be. Because only one person in the entire world could arouse those kinds of feelings. Feelings that he'd never, ever, felt in his entire life for anyone.

"Wait?" Tasha hissed as Storm pulled his hand out of hers and slowly walked over to the huntress who hadn't bothered getting up. "What do you mean wait?" But Storm wasn't listening, he kept walking forward. "Storm! What are you doing! She's a hunter! This could be some kind of trick! An ambush! We have to get going!"

Storm turned quickly to look at Tasha. "Just… just trust me on this. I-I think I know her." At this Storm's eyebrows furrowed. Tasha just looked at him like he was crazy. "Please, just… give me a minute. If I die then you can say, 'I told you so.'"

Tasha's lips twitched but she crossed her arms and regained her composure. "Not funny."

Storm smiled. "It was too, and you know it."

"Storm—" Tasha objected.

"I know what I'm doing," he promised before turning back around to the girl. "I think." he added in a mutter taking another step.

The huntress, who had her head turned, her hair forming a curtain, blocking her face completely, scrambled back, away from Storm as he came closer. That is until she hit the brick wall. Still she didn't move, get up, run away. She simply sat there, her head turned away.

Storm knelt down next to her and hesitantly reached forward to rest a hand on her shoulder. She jerked her shoulder out of his grasp and pushed herself closer to the wall.

"I-I'm not going to hurt you." Storm said quietly.

Nothing.

After a moment he stepped over to the other side, but she merely turned her head to the right. Again, Storm reached forward slowly and rested his hand on her shoulder.

"I just need to ask you something." he said lamely. She responded by pulling away from him. As she did this, her bare arm brushed his fingertips and a shock went through both of them.

Finally, the huntress turned her head toward him, her eyes wider than before, and locked eyes with his.

Tasha walked over and covered her mouth with her hand. "Is that the Vigilante?" she asked in stupefaction. "That can't be."

But it was.

As if in a trance, Storm reached forward, barely breathing in and out. The girl sat there, staring at him, frozen. He delicately took the edge of the mask between his thumb and index finger and started to peel it off. The Vigilante turned her head away slightly, closing her eyes.

Storm shook his head, the mask dropping out of his now numb hand.

_No,_ he thought. _Just no!_

Not her! This soft, elegant thing? A hunter? Now way!

Then his eyes flickered down and noticed two small, identical bumps on her neck. They were slightly agleam in the dim light of the moon. Still quite fresh.

That's when he knew. He didn't want to accept it. Here it was, though, almost like a slap in the face.

It was her.

_She_ was the infamous Vigilante.

She was…

"Emerald." Storm breathed.

* * *

><p>Emerald didn't know what to say. She slowly turned her head back and looked at Storm. His eyes sparked with anger and hurt and disbelief and betrayal. Emerald opened her mouth to say something, anything, but nothing came out. What <em>could<em> she say? How would she explain this?

"You're girlfriend's the Vigilante?" Tasha asked.

Storm turned toward his friend annoyance flashing in his eyes. "She's not my girlfriend. I met her, like two weeks ago. We've only hung out once." he defended, turning back to face Emerald again.

"Still!" Tasha exclaimed. "She's _the_ Vigilante! I can't believe this!"

But neither Storm nor Emerald were paying any attention to her. They were staring at each other again. Not moving, not speaking, no words able to describe what happened a second ago. But, finally, with one last small shake of her head, Emerald leaped up, grabbed her dagger, and dashed back down the alleyway. Just like that she was gone, engulfed by the buildings surrounding them.

She didn't stop running for anything. She just ran and ran. Thanks to all her training, it didn't take much out of her, even in heels. However, the shock of it all was taking a toll on her. She had just let two vampires know her identity! That was like the golden rule all hunters needed to keep! It was especially dangerous with a reputation like hers.

The doorman opened the door for her and tipped his hat. She gave him a weak smile and nodded as well, her chest was heaving, but she slowed and walked calmly and civilized into the lobby. The ride up to her floor was quiet, but as soon as Emerald got into her suite, she had something close to a meltdown.

"Dammit!" Emerald growled throwing her fist against the wall making sure not to punch a hole. She went into the bathroom and ripped her wig off and threw it to one side before quickly taking her colored contacts out. Letting out a heavy sigh she rested her palms on either side of the sink and stared at her reflection in the mirror, but then she saw those eyes.

Storm's wonderful, electric blue eyes, glittering with pain of deception.

Emerald let out a hiss and dropped her head, letting her hair fall around her.

_But he's a vampire!_ She yelled at herself. Then again she could argue that it was her fault she didn't realize that he was a vampire in the first place! But, how was that even possible! She was one of the best, most skilled hunters here in New York! How could she _not_ tell that Storm was a vampire?

She couldn't have been losing her touch… could she? He was just one vampire. She knew how to determine if a person was a vampire or not. Heck, she'd done it not even a day ago on her way to school. All it took was a glance and she'd know.

But how did she not know that Storm was! She'd come into contact with him more than once, she'd been inches from him and still, nothing screamed danger when she was around him. Just the opposite, really. When she was around him, all sensible, conscious, logical thoughts seemed to just disappear whenever she saw him.

Now that Emerald thought of it, he made her feel… strange: warm, safe, happy. Like she could trust him, like should could let her guard down around him. Which was a ludicrous thought because he was a _vampire_! He was a dangerous, cold-hearted killer. She would never be safe around him, not that she was ever going to be around him anymore.

No.

She was never going to see or speak to him again.

Emerald looked back up at her reflection in the mirror. Her face had hardened into a mask, her jaw set, her eyes flashing wickedly.

And if he ever wandered into her territory again, she'd kill him.

**My apologies for the wait. Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	9. Nine

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Disturbance

"How was school?" Adrian asked as Storm came in. However, Storm didn't answer because he was lost in thought and hadn't heard his father.

He closed the door and started for the stairs.

"Storm," Adrian called. Still no reaction. Looking around, Adrian took a pen from the small table he was standing next to and threw it at his son. It hit him in the back of the head.

"Ow!" Storm exclaimed, his hand reaching up to rub where the pen had hit him instinctively. He turned to look at his dad. "What was that for?"

"How was school?" Adrian repeated.

"Fine." Storm muttered turning back around and continuing his ascent up the stairs.

"Are you all right, son?" he asked. Storm stopped again and looked down at his dad.

"I'm fine." he answered before turning.

"Is there something you want to talk about?" Adrian persisted before Storm could take another step.

"No." he stated flatly not bothering to look at his dad this time.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Storm—" Adrian started.

"Dad, I have a lot of homework that's due tomorrow. I don't have time for Twenty Questions." Storm interrupted pivoting around to look at his dad. When Adrian didn't say anything Storm headed upstairs once again.

"I know about the human girl, Storm." Adrian finally said stopping Storm dead in his tracks.

Storm spun around. "Did Tasha—"

"No." He didn't elaborate.

"Then how—?" Storm started.

"I am your father. Now, are you going to come down here and explain what all is going on, or do I have to ground you for the next month?"

With a heavy sigh, Storm descended the stairs and followed his father into the living room. Adrian rolled his eyes and muttered, "Teenagers." under his breath as he sat down in one of the chairs. Storm dropped his backpack and overdramatically fell onto the couch opposite of his dad.

He stared moodily out one of the windows.

"You're eighteen, act it." Adrian said slightly exasperated. "Now, what's this about a human girl?"

"It-It's nothing, Dad." Storm told him unconvincingly. It didn't help that he was averting Adrian's gaze.

"Now, son—"

Storm's head snapped up and he met his father's penetrating brown eyes. "What is there to talk about, Dad? She's human. She's… she's a… a _hunter_." He snarled the word, his hands clenching into fists.

Adrian sat back and stared at his son calmly. "Do you want to talk about it?" he finally asked.

Storm stood. "Frankly, no, I don't want to talk about it." He picked up his backpack. "And I wasn't just making an excuse. I do have a lot of homework I need to finish tonight." He slung one of the straps over his shoulder. "So, if you'll excuse me." With that, he turned his heel and walked back upstairs to his room.

Adrian sighed heavily and pinched the bride of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut. "_Teenagers._" he hissed.

* * *

><p>They were screaming and shouting. Emerald couldn't tell why, but she wished they'd stop!<p>

With a heavy sigh, she rested her head into her arms and stared glumly ahead at the white walls of the cafeteria as her friends continued along with their excited shouts and talk.

"Isn't this great!" Carter exclaimed looking at Emerald. Emerald didn't respond.

"Anybody home?" Danny asked waving a hand in front of Emerald's face. She didn't blink, didn't budge.

They all sat back down, crowding around Emerald finally realizing something was wrong with their friend.

"Maybe she's asleep." Danny suggested.

"With her eyes open?" Mackenzie pointed out.

Danny shrugged defensively.

Carter tapped Emerald's shoulder. "Hey, Emma," she said knowing that'd get some response out of Emerald. And she was right… sort of. Emerald simply turned her head to glare at her friend.

"Don't call me that." she said in a monotone.

Carter would've laughed but the look in Emerald's eyes stopped her.

"Are you all right?" she asked concerned.

Emerald turned her head back to the space on the wall. "Fine." she muttered.

"Um… listen," Mackenzie started slowly, not believing her at all, and hoping this news would cheer her up. "Shaun White is going to be at Air Skate and Air Jump Corporation. We're all going, including Anthony."

Before Mackenzie could invite Emerald she said, "Well you can count me out. I'm not going." Just then the bell rang. "I'll see you guys later." she mumbled getting up, slinging her backpack over her shoulder and sulking off to her next class.

All three of her friends exchanged worried looks.

Emerald took her usual route home, but wasn't on her skateboard. She was still thinking about last night. She was angry with herself, angry with Storm, angry with those _stupid_ feelings she got whenever she was near Storm, angry with how horrible she felt when she came to the conclusion that she was going to kill him if she ever came across him again.

He _was_ a vampire. She shouldn't feel bad about killing him, but she did. She dreaded thinking about killing him. Sometimes she'd even wish she'd never see him ever again. That way she could avoid the inevitable.

Emerald walked slowly with her head down, not noticing the other person, who was also moping, head down as well. And they were on a collision course, too busy to notice each other until they crashed.

Emerald gasped, dropped the books in her hand and quickly pulled back.

"I'm so sorry—" she started until she looked up and saw who it was. She froze for a second before bending down to pick up her things and rushing off in the direction she came and decided to take the long way home, through all the foot traffic.

When she opened her door though, the first thing she saw was her three friends: Mackenzie, Carter, and Danny standing in the far corner of the small living room-like area of her suite. A large banner was hanging above them that read: INTERVENTION. They were all holding letters in their hands.

Emerald made a face, swiveled around and started to walk back out but her friends rushed up to her and blocked her path.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Carter objected. "Just here us out."

"How did you get in here?" was Emerald's response.

"That's not the point now," Mackenzie said. "Just come in and sit down. You can't run away from your problems forever."

"Guys, come on… I don't need an intervention." Emerald complained as Carter took Emerald's hand, Mackenzie the other and led her in while Danny closed the door.

"They're right you know," Danny commented as Emerald sat down on the couch.

"I don't have issues and I'm not running from anything. What made you think that anyway?" Emerald asked staring at her crazy friends.

"You love Shaun White." Carter pointed out.

"Okay… and," Emerald beckoned for them to continue.

"You don't want to go see him when you have the chance." Mackenzie said.

"This is, like, a once in a lifetime chance and you're not going!" Danny exclaimed. "You could talk to him! Get his autograph on your board or something! How can you turn something like that down?"

"I'm just not in the mood." Emerald said shrugging like it was nothing.

"We're your friends, you can tell us anything." Carter said softly, sitting down next to Emerald on the couch.

She shook her head. "I can't tell you, sorry."

Mackenzie sat down on Emerald's other side. "Like Carter said, we're your friends. Talking about it makes everything better." she coaxed.

Emerald sighed quickly thinking of something she could tell them. "It's just… a boy." she blurted.

"Oh, great." Danny groaned making a face, while both Mackenzie and Carter simultaneously said, "Aw, honey," sympathetically.

"It's not that big of a deal, jeez." Emerald frowned.

"She's right, let's move on to the subject we were really here for." Danny quickly interjected.

"Oh, shush!" Carter reprimanded giving him a hard look before turning back to Emerald. Danny rolled his eyes and fell into a chair opposite of the couch, with his arms crossed.

"It is a big deal though! Who is he? What's his name? When did you guys meet? Does he go to our school? Why didn't you tell us about him sooner?" Carter bombarded Emerald with questions.

She looked at Carter her brain freezing up because of all the questions it'd been hit with.

"I…I-I-I…I—" Emerald stuttered. "I can't answer any of those. I really shouldn't have even told you about him." She stood. "You guys should leave. I… have a bunch of homework I need to finish and a big project due Friday." She took the banner down. "Thanks for your concern, but there's really nothing you need to be concerned about. I'm fine. And I'd love to join you." Emerald turned and smiled at her friends reassuringly, folding the banner up with her arms.

Three pairs of curious, slightly uneasy eyes looked back at her.

"I'm fine, really." Emerald told them in a very convincing tone.

* * *

><p>They got to the old building in no time flat. As Hal (a bulky, tall guy with a mop of curly brown hair) got within inches the buzzer went and both him and Emerald slid inside, heading to the top floor without hesitation. All the hunters were tense, eyes wide. They held their weapons like a mob of vampires was going to burst through the doors any second and claim back whoever they'd kidnapped.<p>

"All right," Emerald stopped in the doorway. "Either it's so urgent that you interrupted me in the middle of school to come over, or it's so unimportant that we don't need to wear masks and protect our identities. Which is it?" she asked crossing her arms.

"It's… complicated." Hal answered beckoning her inside. Emerald didn't move a muscle. "You'll know what I mean when I show you. Please, just… come inside."

Unwillingly, Emerald stepped inside. Hal put a hand on the back of her shoulder and led her down the hallway and to the third door on the right. It was closed.

Hal stepped in front of Emerald and opened the door. It was an empty room except for one person… or rather, vampire. He was sitting in the middle of the room in a chair with his wrists and ankles bound with rope (his arms laced through the bars of the back of the chair). No doubt bast, the rope made with wood. If tied tightly and in the right position, it'd definitely stop any vampire's attempts to escape. If not that, it'd slow them down long enough to stake him (or her).

He was slumped in his seat, but his look was unmistakable.

"You guys _caught_ the Reaper?" Emerald asked disbelievingly. "That's not possible." she said shaking her head. "That's not possible. He's the Reaper for goodness sakes."

Hal rolled his eyes and shoved her playfully. "You're not the only skilled vampire hunter here."

Still, it didn't make sense! Not trying to sound stuck-up or big-headed—she has killed the most vampires in the state of New York. She's bested five vampires at once without breaking a sweat. If she couldn't beat him by herself, how did they manage to catch him?

It just wasn't adding up!

"So what? You caught him last night and you decide to tell me _now_? In the middle of school? Why not last night? Why not after school ended? Why not wait until I just showed up tonight?" Emerald asked ready to get back to school.

Hal's smile faded and his forehead wrinkled. "He… asked for you, specifically, when we caught him."

"You mean, me, as in, the Vigilante?"

His face hardened. "No. You, as in, Emerald."

Emerald shook her head a smile pulling at the edge of her lips. "No, that's not possible. I _know_ he doesn't know my identity. He would've killed me by now if he did."

"You do realize how bad this looks, don't you?" Hal asked totally ignoring her.

The faint smile dropped, she straightened up, and her eyes flashed, becoming frozen. "What are you saying?" she asked her voice sharper than the blades they used.

Hal swallowed visibly. "It's just… a vampire asking for you, by name, looks—"

"Suspicious?" she challenged. "What are you implying?"

"Well, no one knows a lot about you—"

Emerald stepped closer to Hal, meeting his eyes. "Exactly." she said in a dangerous, low voice. "You don't know anything about me. You don't know what their kind have done to me."

"Then you wouldn't mind killing him?" Hal asked slowly, carefully choosing his words.

Emerald knew that he was baiting her. They all still thought that she had some kind of deal with this guy. If she killed him, she'd prove her loyalties. If she didn't, couldn't (which was highly unlikely), or refused that'd give them confirmation that she _was_ working with him. But she hated it when people ordered her around. Or when they questioned her with something as big as this. Why did she have to prove herself to them?

"Fine." Emerald spat coldly. She stepped inside, pulling out the knife in her pocket, and slamming the door closed.

Without a word, she stood in front of the Reaper, her knife in her right hand, her left hand holding the back of the chair for support. She positioned the knife right in front of the heart and got ready to stab. But something stopped her. It all felt wrong. All of this. She'd never staked a vampire that was subdued. (Not even awake in this case.)

She looked up at the wall opposite of where she was standing, gripped the hilt tightly, and closed her eyes for a moment, centering herself. She could do this. He was the _Reaper_! He needed to be taken off the streets. She did tell him the next time they met one of them wasn't going to be leaving alive, after all.

Taking a deep breath, she looked back down to make sure her knife was poised just right (now was not the time to make a mistake) only to meet his eyes.

Those brilliant blue eyes that flashed like lightning.

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	10. Ten

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Flames

With a gasp, Emerald veered back until she hit the wall. She couldn't break her eyes away from his. Her heart turned to lead, and her blood seemed to ignite. The Reaper smiled weakly, and Emerald could've sworn she saw hunger seep into his eyes, but it was gone so fast she wondered if she had just imagined it.

_No._ A small voice whispered. He _was_ hungry. Not starving, not yet, but he was definitely feeling the effects of no feeding for however long he'd been locked up.

Finally she couldn't take it. Against all rational thought, she turned her back to him, covering her eyes with her hands (her right still holding the knife).

"Stop!" she gasped. "Stop looking at me!" she growled angrily.

"Why not?" he asked in a calm voice. There was some strain behind it, but anyone who wasn't listening hard enough wouldn't be able to detect it.

Taking a deep breath, sticking her dagger back inside her pocket and readying herself for the shock of a lifetime, she slowly turned and faced him again. Narrowing her eyes she appraised him carefully. She did a slow circle around him, looking at him from all angles before coming to face him again, this time closer. Like, faces-inches-apart, closer.

Emerald could tell he was struggling with her being this close, but at the moment none of that really mattered.

Reluctantly, without a word, Emerald reached up with both hands. One took _The Phantom of the Opera_ mask off while, simultaneously, the other pushed back his curly, golden-brown hair and fedora. The items dropped to the floor resoundingly.

Emerald shook her head. "No." she whispered. "No way."

Storm snorted softly, shaking out his dark, cherry wood colored hair. "Now you know how I feel." he said.

She stopped her pacing briefly to glower at him with those stunning eyes of hers. Those beautiful eyes that changed color in the light. At first glance they were pure amber, but when the sun shone at just the right angle they looked amber-green, and if the light illuminated her face completely they turned a dazzling emerald green. But it didn't stop there, if you looked closer, no matter what color they were, they always had a thin ring of deep, twinkling sapphire blue just on the outside of her irises, and a jagged ring of hazel surrounding her pupils.

"You do have beautiful eyes." Storm commented vaguely, thinking back to when they'd first met in the alley after she'd just killed a vampire.

Emerald flushed and turned away before she started pacing again.

"What are you doing?" she asked harshly.

"I wanted to see you, Emerald." he answered simply.

Emerald spun around so quickly, that if Storm didn't know any better he'd think she was a vampire herself, and pointed a finger at him. "_Don't_ call me that." she spat through gritted teeth. "Don't call me that."

"It _is_ your name." he stated an amused smile playing on his lips.

Emerald narrowed her eyes, but her lower lip jutted out the tiniest fraction of an inch. Her expression was purely adorable and it had Storm's pulse pounding.

"So, what," she asked in a grudging voice, "you decided to just get caught?"

Storm wriggled uncomfortably and winced as the rope dug deeper into his wrists and ankles. "I didn't expect them to keep me so long." he complained.

Emerald shook her head, her dark curls shaking along with her. "You need to man up."

Storm glared at her ruefully.

She flashed a smile, her white teeth showing momentarily.

"Maybe I can help with that." she said, reaching for, Storm thought, her dagger. And for a scary moment he thought she was going to kill him. Instead she pulled out a switchblade, flipped it open and knelt down. She paused momentarily to mutter, "I can't believe I'm doing this." before she cut through the ropes easily, like scissors cutting paper.

"Sharp knife." Storm acknowledged as she went around to cut the ropes binding his wrists. He brought his wrists forward to examine them. They were red, raw, throbbed painfully and slowly oozing blood. Storm made a face and stood up, trying to ignore the dull ache in his muscles, from oxygen deprivation. It wasn't bad now, but if he didn't feed soon, it wasn't going to be very pretty.

Emerald was standing at the door; she had cracked it open and was peering out.

"They're going to kill me for this." she said closing it quietly again.

"Then why not just kill me?" Storm asked.

"You won't let me, now that you're free, I'm sure." she answered with narrowed eyes, an eyebrow cocked.

"I wouldn't want you to get killed because of me."

Emerald crossed her arms. "_You're_ the Reaper." she said shaking her head. Storm nodded. "You." He smiled but it wasn't that charming one he'd used on the dance floor, it had a twisted, wicked edge to it.

It was quiet for a moment as they stared at each other. Finally Emerald looked away.

"Why haven't you killed me yet?" she asked quietly.

Storm didn't answer. Instead, he stepped forward, toward Emerald and in one swift movement he had turned her around holding her own switchblade lightly against her neck. His left arm had snaked around her shoulders, holding her firmly to him. Her hands had come up to grab his arm instinctively.

Emerald's heart went wild and she quickly tried to compose herself.

"Do you want me to?" Storm asked quietly in her ear.

Emerald turned her head slightly as if to look at him. "You can try." she murmured back just as her hand shot up and dug her thumb into Storm's wrist. He hissed and pulled back as Emerald grabbed her switchblade from his hand.

She folded it up and shoved it back into her pocket as she turned to face Storm again. He was rubbing his wrist, but his eyes were slightly glazed over. His jaw was taut, and his whole body tense.

A pang went through Emerald. A pang she didn't like at all. She sighed and looked up at the ceiling.

"I better not regret this." she groaned, like she was praying the luck gods or something. Then she looked back as Storm. "Come on, we're getting out of here."

She turned and opened the door, but was pulled out forcibly by someone. One of the hunters held her arms behind her back with one arm and grabbed a fistful of her hair with the other. Emerald grunted in pain.

Storm stepped forward ready to help, but Emerald met his eyes and spat, "_Don't._" And, just like that, she changed. Storm could feel it, practically see it. Her eyes froze over, crystallized, and it seemed like something passed over her. The air around her altered to something cold, black, sharp. Nothing even close to the delicate, nearly serene feelings that usually surrounded her.

It was kind of like one of those movie moments, where everything slowed down momentarily.

Storm watched, almost appalled at what he saw.

Emerald didn't look scared, or worried. She turned her head slightly, her eyes moving up to the corner's of her eyes to look at the hunter that was holding her in annoyance and irritation. Not a moment after she slammed her foot down on his. He howled in pain as Emerald slipped one of her arms free and jammed her elbow into his chin. Finally the hunter let go, now growling. But she was too fast for him, as soon as his grip became slack Emerald spun around and threw her fist out, crushing the hunter's nose.

He cried out, as blood flowed from his broken nose, and fell to the floor. Storm held his breath and tried not to think of the blood, of his screaming muscles. Swallowing hard he looked back at Emerald who was now standing and looking at the other hunters gathered around.

Emerald's gaze raked over the group, challenging them.

"Anyone who doesn't agree with my decision," she started in a deadly quiet voice, "answers to me." Emerald walked back, grabbed Storm's arm and then started down the hallway, the hunters backing up quickly. They exited the building without a hitch.

Storm didn't know where they were going, but he stumbled along dazedly. His muscles were tightening up and cramping painfully. Yellow lights flashed behind his eyes. He needed blood, right now, but Emerald kept a firm grip—like an iron vise—on his arm, like she knew.

When they got to her suite at the Marriott, Storm nearly collapsed at the foot of one of the beds, gasping for air, his whole body burning and throbbing with shockwave after shockwave of pure agony. Emerald caught him and got him to sit on the edge of the bed. She pulled all her hair over right shoulder, exposing the pale skin of her neck. Storm could see the blood pulse through her veins.

"Here, drink." she ordered, her voice slightly quivering. She wasn't looking at him.

Storm shook his head despite all that he was feeling. "No, I… can't." he gasped shying away from her.

"You need this and I'm not going to watch you drink from someone else. My instincts would kick in and you'd be dead." Her voice was hard, but her heart hammering.

Storm shook his head, no longer able to speak.

He heard Emerald move toward him even closer, and gently rested her hands on one of his. He ground his teeth feeling her life-force beat against his cold, dead skin. Before he could stop himself, the hunter came out.

Like a flash of lightning Storm turned and stood, capturing Emerald into his arms, firmly wrapping one of his arms around her waist, one of his hands coming up to cradle her face, her hair tickling his fingers.

Emerald gasped at the contact, his skin on hers. The blood roared in her ears, her vision became slightly hazy, and her stomach tightened and twisted. She blinked rapidly, the feeling of giving in to him, overwhelming her. The feeling of being _prey_ to him was horrendous. She was putting her life into his hands. The vampire that was notorious for killing the most adept vampire hunters.

And here she was, gazing into his eyes, not moving, not fighting back as he slowly tilted her head at the perfect angle, exposing her throat to him. It was really unnerving.

What had made him hate hunters so much? What made him create an alter ego when he hunted them? What was strange, she realized, was that they were alike in a certain way. Not just how they wore their disguises, but, she could just feel it, there was anger and pain stored within the deepest depths of his soul.

Before she could think about this, Storm lowered his head. She froze, tensing, her breath coming out in ragged gasps.

"Relax," he whispered, his lips at her ear, his breath blowing across her exposed neck. "It'll hurt more, just relax." he urged.

"That's reassuring." she muttered trying to force her muscles, which were objecting vehemently, to go slack.

Storm tightened his grip around her waist ever so slightly getting a sharp intake of breath as a response from Emerald.

Storm's needle-point canines brushed her throat and her heart spasmed. And then, just like that, he sunk his teeth into her neck.

At first, her heart fluttered, and she panicked. Her muscles shrieked at her to take out her dagger and stab him through the heart, make it all stop! This was all wrong! She was his prey; he could kill her if he wanted to. Why had she subjected herself to this in the first place? How could she ever give herself up like this? This was so unlike her! Unlike the hunter within her, struggling to take control. Struggling to take over her motor controls and rid the world of such an abhorrent vampire.

Her throat ached and stung where his teeth pierced. She could practically feel her life draining from her and the sharp pain become more. Instinctively her hands came up and put them against Storm's chest, preparing to push.

_Just relax._ Storm said. But he hadn't spoken his mouth was still at her throat. He had spoken telepathically, his voice almost like a summer breeze, a soft caress.

_Relax._ She thought letting her eyes slide close slowly. The pain instantly dissipated and Emerald realized just how softly, gently Storm held her in his arms. How his lips felt, strangely and scarily, soft against her throat.

Then, out of the clear blue sky, something she couldn't even begin to explain happened. It was like she was being electrocuted. The energy—pure, buzzing, warm _energy_—flowed through her body, before exiting out of the small of her back. This feeling made it harder to breathe, made Emerald feel lightheaded, delirious.

The world around them fell away. She was no longer aware of Storm physically at least. It felt like their minds, both Storm's and Emerald's, were being pried open.

As their minds opened up, Emerald could feel something forming between them; connecting them.

In a sheer alarm Emerald's eyes flew open but it seemed as if she'd been removed from her body. She wasn't looking up at the ceiling of her suite at the Marriott, but at Storm's soul. A soul that was just hanging there. No restrictions, no limitation, no… _walls_. It was just there, unprotected, vulnerable. And Emerald had a feeling he saw hers as well.

Their souls, minds, beings seemed to gravitate toward each other. His soul touched hers, intertwined with hers. It was a fascinating sensation. Something so light, so tender… nothing she'd felt in what seemed like ever. His mind surrounded her, engulfed her. Like the flash of lightning and she was surrounded in beautiful blue that crackled and sparked.

However, as Emerald looked around in wonder she realized there were dark purple clouds looming in the distance. It was weird because it was like your regular thunderstorm. She could vaguely hear the booms, and see the flashes of lightning within the clouds.

This stirred her curiosity and instantly felt Storm try to put up his walls, but it wasn't working. Their minds had melded. Nevertheless she could feel he was trying to pull away, and this made her feel startlingly hollow.

_You can trust me._ She spoke to him softly.

Storm pulled away even more. _Why does it even matter?_ His voice was sharp, cold.

It was Emerald's turn to bring up her walls. To block him out. But this only made his curiosity illuminate. Emerald started her retreat; tried to pull away from his probing. She didn't want him to know! She thought desperately. She didn't want anyone to know.

She tried her hardest, her best to keep Storm out, to keep him away. But she knew sooner or later that he'd find it. He'd find out what she was trying so frantically trying to hide. There was nowhere to conceal anything any longer, her thoughts weren't safe. She was out in the open.

_But I won't be much longer._ Emerald thought solemnly. _No!_

With a jolt Emerald and Storm were pulled back into their own minds, but Emerald could still feel that strange connection. Like a cord that had formed between them. Strong like steel, yet flexible enough you could wrap it around the whole world an infinite amount of times. Right now it was humming, vibrating, like someone had just strummed it.

Emerald was looking up at Storm's blue eyes, which seemed to have darkened slightly. Somewhere in there he'd stopped drinking from her. Now they were holding each other, still standing between the two beds of Emerald's suite.

She let out a gusty breath and closed her eyes, pulling away from Storm.

"No." she repeated out loud this time, looking away. Storm gazed at her warily and slowly situated himself on the edge of the bed. Emerald went over to the other bed and sat there, across from him.

Emerald looked up at him, finally and took a deep breath.

"What—?" she started, but her voice broke and she couldn't continue. She looked down finding a sudden interest in her converse.

"Soulmates." Storm answered knowing exactly what she'd wanted to ask.

"Soulmates." Emerald echoed in a blank, yet shocked voice, not looking up from the floor. "Soulmates…."

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	11. Eleven

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: I'm not really sure how these star event things work, so I winged it. Hope you enjoy!**

Conflicted

It was silent for a few moments. They didn't speak. They didn't look at each other.

Emerald looked at the clock.

"Listen, Emerald—" Storm started.

But Emerald stood, Storm following, and cut him off. "I need to get back to school before lunch ends." It was amazing all that happened had only been twenty minutes at the most. Go figure.

She still wouldn't look at him as she continued when Storm didn't say anything. "You should… you should go. I—"

"Look at me." Storm commanded, his voice almost shaking. Emerald's head snapped up and their eyes locked.

"I really just need some time to… work this out." she finished.

"What's to work out? We're soulmates—"

Emerald broke his gaze and raised her hands, a motioning to stop. "It's just…" she said slowly, lowering her arms, "a lot to take in, in one afternoon." She looked back at him, her eyes looked slightly watery but there were no tears. "I mean, you're a vampire—"

"Yeah, and you're a hunter." Storm retorted.

Emerald stepped closer to him. "Exactly. Don't you think that you'd want to think about this a little? You can't just drop the 'Oh we're soulmates' bomb on someone and not expect them to freak out, to need a little space to think about things, to sort some of their thoughts." She met his eyes again a silent beg within their amber-green depths.

Storm's eyes smoldered making Emerald's heart thump irregularly.

"Stop that!" she exclaimed turning away and heading toward the front door, with Storm on her heels. "I'm leaving right now. When I get back I want you to be gone. If I want to talk to you I'll call you or something. Okay?" she asked opening the door.

Storm didn't answer, instead he pressed his hand against the door, slamming it shut, and leaning on it. Emerald quickly spun around before veering back not realizing how close he was. She froze, her thoughts stopping. She almost stopped breathing.

Storm slowly leaned forward, enjoying hearing her heart pound. Seeing the blood, as bright and as red as roses, rush into her cheeks. His lips brushed hers and she let out a small gasp. But Emerald put her hands up, onto his chest and turned her head away slightly.

"I'll see you later, then." Storm whispered in her ear, before opening the door and stepping out.

Emerald stood there for a moment, palms sweaty, whole body shaking slightly. As the feelings slowly faded, she took control of her emotions and took calm, soothing breaths. Then she looked at her watch. She now had five minutes to get back to school. With a big, gusty sigh she paused for one more moment making sure her emotions were in check and then booked it back to school.

* * *

><p>"There you are!" Carter exclaimed coming up to Emerald's locker, Danny and Mackenzie close behind. "We waited for you but the bell rang and we had to get to class."<p>

"Oh, yeah," Emerald closed her locker and slung her backpack over her shoulder. "Well, I got back just at the bell rang, so I had to get to class before the late bell."

Her three friends crowded around her as they walked out of the building.

"So, what happened?" Danny asked.

"You promised us an explanation, remember?" Mackenzie put in.

Emerald shrugged, turned to face her friends, and grabbed her skateboard from her pack.

"A minor family emergency. Everyone's fine." she assured them.

Carter opened her mouth, no doubt to ask Emerald more questions, but just then Anthony came up to them with a warm smile for Carter.

"Hey, cutie," he said putting an arm around Carter's shoulders and kissing her temple. She blushed a deep red and giggled a little hysterically. Mackenzie and Danny made disgusted faces and Emerald rolled her eyes. "What are we talking about?" Anthony continued.

"Oh, just the event on Saturday. You still coming?" Emerald said before any of her friends could tell him about her love life and family problems.

Anthony smiled his zircon eyes sparkling. "Totally. Wouldn't miss it. I have to go now. I'll see you later." He pulled back to look at Carter.

Biting her lip she nodded and mumbled out something that sounded like a goodbye. Anthony headed off.

"Well, it looks like it's going good." Emerald commented since she knew no one else would.

Carter sighed and nodded her eyes still on Anthony's retreating figure. "Yeah." she breathed dreamily.

Danny and Mackenzie exchanged a glance with Emerald.

"Well, I have to be going now." Danny said just as Mackenzie said, "I should get home. My mom will be expecting me soon."

"Come on Carter, walk with me." Emerald suggested stepping forward and beckoning her dazed friend forward.

"Thanks you." Mackenzie mouthed.

Emerald made a face and stuck her tongue out them. "Cowards." she mouthed before turning her back on them so she couldn't see their responses.

"Has he kissed you yet?" Emerald finally asked when they were out of earshot. She toyed with her board as they walked down the usual route she took to get home.

Carter sighed wistfully. "No, not yet." Then her voice brightened up. "But we're planning on going out for a late lunch on Saturday and that's going to be the third date, so I'm hoping he makes a move then."

"You do realize that it was just a movie." Emerald pointed out taking a sideways glance at Carter. Her eyes were still dreamy.

"Yeah, but he saw it too. A girl can dream can't she?" she asked blinking and looking over at Emerald with a smile.

"I suppose," Emerald muttered her mind straying suddenly to Storm. Blinking she quickly asked, "How are things going in the relationship?" to get her mind off of him.

"Wonderful!" she proclaimed. "He's such a gentleman. Definitely not a jerk, like most jocks tend to be. He really cares about me, you know? He asks about my day and actually listens. He opens doors for me. He pulls out my chair for me and won't sit down unless I'm seated."

"Wow, sounds almost _too_ nice." Emerald pointed out.

Carter hit her arm playfully. "Oh, you're just jealous." Emerald looked over at her Carter. She was smiling, but it didn't match her eyes.

"Okay, what is it. I know something's bothering you. You can tell me."

Carter shook her head, her curls swinging. "No, it's kind of embarrassing." But the tone of her voice was almost hurt.

Emerald stopped and took Carter's shoulders in her hands. She still avoided her gaze. "Look at me." she ordered. Carter slowly lifted her head. Her amber eyes were watery. "Oh, don't cry. I'm sorry if I upset you." Emerald pulled her in for a hug and rubbed her back.

Carter sniffled and pulled back with a small smile. They continued walking.

"It's okay. It's just…" She exhaled sharply. "He's always asking about you."

Emerald almost tripped over one of the concrete squares that was sticking out of the sidewalk. "Me? Why?"

"I don't know." Carter said miserably. "I mean, it's not like constant. But it just pops up when you don't expect it to. We'll just be talking and then he'll ask, 'Oh, how's Emerald doing?' or 'What's Emerald been up to?' 'Have you seen Emerald?'"

"Gee, I'm sorry. Does he ask about Danny or Mackenzie?" Emerald queried hopefully.

Carter shrugged. "He's only asked once or twice. It's your name that keeps popping up."

"But, hey, he likes _you_. I mean, he did ask you out. And you guys look so good together. I'm sure it's just a phase." Emerald tried to encourage.

Carter smiled. "Thanks."

They turned a corner and someone ran forward crashed into Carter, shoving her roughly against the wall. She yelped but the man, who was wearing a navy blue track suite, the hood pulled up, shadowing his face, pulled out a large hunting knife.

"Neither of you move, or make a single noise." he ordered in a low, gruff voice.

Emerald had the strong urge to taunt him, but bit her tongue. If she were by herself, she could've taken care of this easily, gotten a few insults here and there, because that was just how she rolled, but with Carter's life on the line… She'd never do something like that.

Besides, this was a human mugger, he'd respond differently than a vampire.

"W-what do y-y-you want?" Carter asked through her tears.

The mugger didn't answer, or rather, he didn't answer with words.

Carter yelped as he ripped her backpack off and threw her over to where Emerald was standing, trying to think of a plan. She stumbled into Emerald, who righted her and muttered, "Get behind me." Carter didn't pause or hesitate, she quickly dodged behind her best friend without any questions.

The mugger was now going through Carter's backpack, and that was the moment Emerald picked to walk up to him, board raised. He looked at her in alarm right before she slammed the nose of the board right between the mugger's eyes. The guy let out a cry and staggered back, dropping the pack, its contents spilling out onto the alley floor.

"Emerald—" Carter's voice was shocked, to say the least. She broke off when Emerald brought her board back for one more blow to the side of the head. The mugger went down, and didn't get up.

She turned back to Carter who was staring open-mouthed at her friend.

"Come on, get your stuff and let's go." Emerald said putting urgency into her tone. Carter didn't move. She looked frozen, her face was ashen and clammy, her lips as white as a ghost's. She was going into shock.

Emerald quickly stashed her skateboard on her backpack before bending down and picking up Carter's things. She slung one of the straps over her shoulder before taking Carter's hand.

"Can you walk?" she asked quietly.

She nodded robotically.

"Do you feel dizzy, sick, weak?" Emerald asked taking a couple steps forward. Carter followed slowly.

"A-a… a little dizzy. Kind of weak." she answered her voice not even a whisper.

Emerald put an arm around her friend's shoulders, and led her away a little quicker than before. "Let's get you to my place then."

They weren't very far, and it only took them a few minutes to get back. Carter was holding up well, but Emerald was still really concerned. She hadn't spoken the whole way and her lips were starting to turn a disconcerting blue color.

Emerald helped her onto the bed, and propped her feet up.

"Are you cold?" she asked when she had Carter situated.

"No," she groaned despondent.

"Warm, then?"

Carter nodded. Emerald hurried off to run a washcloth under ice-cold water, folded it up and let it rest on Carter's forehead. She also got her a glass of water and insisted that she eat at least half of a granola bar. To Emerald's relief her color came back to her lips and face, and Carter fell asleep.

After about a half-hour of debating, Emerald decided to call Anthony. He was, after all, Carter's boyfriend now.

Chewing on her lip, pressing this horrible gut feeling she had down and ignoring it as best she could, she dialed the number she got from Carter's cell.

He was over faster than Emerald thought possible with all the traffic in Manhattan right about now.

"She's in there," Emerald pointed to the bedroom. "She's asleep right now."

Anthony nodded and headed in. Emerald closed the door and followed. She stood in the doorway. Carter had woken up, her cheeks flushed, her eyes just as bright as ever.

They said a few words and just like that Anthony leaned down and kissed Carter. Emerald quickly turned and walked out. Her mind strayed to that afternoon, when Storm had practically kissed her as she was trying to escape. Her lips tingled just from the mere memory.

Emerald froze and stopped those thoughts. Now, wait a minute, this was so _not_ the time to be thinking about him. She still needed to think long and hard about what had happened today. Soulmates or not, could she really give herself to him? Trust him? She'd been jaded one too many times, not only by people surrounding her but vampires. _Especially_ vampires, they had done nothing but hurt and torture her all these years. How could she go and trust one now? _Why_ should she even trust him now?

She'll admit she'd let him feed off her, but that was just… lapse in judgment. She just… hadn't been thinking then! He'd probably used his telepathic powers to somehow convince her to—

Oh, who was she kidding? She was in love with a vampire.

* * *

><p>You'd think that getting the chance to meet her all-time favorite famous person in the skateboarding world would make Emerald the happiest, luckiest person on this entire planet. Okay, so maybe it did, but the woe she was feeling trumped all the other feelings.<p>

Maybe it was irrational, maybe it was different than you'd expect (you know, the feeling of first love and all), but he was a vampire! She'd been killing them for three years straight. How could she just turn her back like that? Especially with her past.

They could talk about it… maybe.

Emerald sighed dismally. She was sitting at one of the tables in the skate park, watching the crowd around Shaun. Some were still skateboarding but most were wanting autographs and pictures. The rest of her friends, Carter, Mackenzie, Danny, and Anthony had gone in and hadn't come out.

Emerald would probably be boarding with the other in the park right about now, but when she'd told them she wasn't coming, Carter stole her board.

"You'll thank me later." she had sung dashing off toward the crowd.

Now she was just waiting until her friends came back. Which was taking a lot longer than she expected.

Something prodded Emerald's ankle. She looked down. It was a skateboard that had slowly rolled over in her direction. A kid, probably eleven or twelve ran over and quickly snatched it up.

"Sorry." he muttered to Emerald before shooting a glare in the direction of a guy who was currently on the ground.

"It's fine." Emerald responded shrugging, looking at the guy with narrowed eyes. The kid shuffled away awkwardly. Emerald stood up and walked over to the guy sprawled out on the ground. It looked as if he had stepped on the kid's board and it rolled under his weight, which made him lose his balance.

She crossed her arms tightly over her chest and stared down at Storm.

"You aren't stalking me are you?" she asked.

He blinked and smiled. "Am I in heaven?" he joked.

Emerald rolled her eyes. "What are you doing here?" she tried again.

"Are you an angel?"

Without her permission, blood rushed up to Emerald's cheeks.

"Don't do that, not here." she said when she found her voice. She reached down and grabbed his hand, ignoring the chill that ran down her spine, to help him up.

"Wait, I might need medical attention." he objected as she hoisted him up. "I could be seriously injured." Storm said as Emerald turned and walked back to the table and sat down, leaning forward and resting her arms out on the table, one fully extended, one bent at an angle. Storm came over a moment later and sat down across from her.

"You shouldn't be here. I told you I needed a little time. Like… a few days at the most. Give or take." Emerald said, resting her head on her folded arm.

"It's been a few days." Storm pointed out helpfully.

"Give then?" Emerald countered.

Storm didn't say anything, instead he reached over and took her outstretched hand in his, gently stroking the back of it. Emerald's hand twitched as if to pull away, but she stifled that urge. She didn't exactly like close contact like hugs (she only did it for the sake of her friends), or hand-holding. And it wasn't so bad. When all was said and done, his hand in hers was soothing and the benign strokes of his thumb, calming. So soothing and calm, in fact, it was starting to lull her into sleep.

"It's just hard for me." Emerald murmured, her eyes drooping. A shudder ran through her body as those memories jerked forward.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." Storm told her quietly, squeezing her hand.

"Emerald!" Carter's voice called.

The sleepiness Emerald had been feeling a moment ago left her and she sat up, pulling her hand out of Storm's. She shook off the haze and turned to see her four friends walking up to her.

"Hey, we got your board signed." Carter said coming up, handing Emerald her board back.

"Which you'll thank us for later." Mackenzie added looking at Emerald expectantly.

"Thanks." she quickly mumbled.

"You really need to go see him. He's fun to talk to." Danny told her matter-of-factly, nodding.

But all three of them stopped short when they noticed the boy sitting at the table, quietly listening to their chatter.

"Oh, who's this?" Carter asked her eyebrows rising, eyes full of accusations directed toward Emerald.

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	12. Twelve

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Mayhem

Emerald stood up. "Guys, this is Storm." she introduced. She looked back at her vampire soulmate and gestured to her friends. "And this is Carter, Mackenzie, Danny, and Anthony." she listed off pointing to them in turn.

Storm nodded his head. "Nice to meet you." he said politely. Emerald's friends nodded and muttered something like a welcome as well. Emerald noticed, however, Anthony's penetrating stare. Something flashed within the depths of his zircon eyes, but it was gone just as quick, Emerald brushed it off as nerves. Too much stress would do that to you.

"You guys wouldn't mind if I borrowed Emerald, would you?" Carter asked reaching out to take Emerald's wrist and pulled her away from the table. Mackenzie pushed Anthony and Danny forward.

"Yeah, we'll be right back. You guys… talk, or something." Mackenzie said following Carter and Emerald. They stopped a few feet away, which to Emerald's mortification, was still much too close. Storm would be able to hear every word and that wasn't exactly comforting.

"Okay, spill." Carter demanded.

Emerald tried her best to keep from turning red. "What's there to tell? We met a couple weeks ago, have only hung out three or four times, I think he's stalking me…." she explained.

"Oh, please, that can't be all of it!" Carter exclaimed desperate for something more juicy.

Emerald shrugged, smirking. "Afraid so."

"Well, do you think it could amount to something?" Mackenzie prodded before Emerald could go back to the boys, who were currently all staring off in different directions awkwardly.

Emerald sighed. She knew just the right questions to ask. "I don't know. I mean, I just met him by chance. He doesn't go to our school. I don't really know all that much about him actually." _Except maybe the fact that he's a vampire that's part of the Night World and we're soulmates._ She added silently in her head. "Listen, I really don't know what's going to come from it. But as of now, it's nothing serious." That was the understatement of the year. "Now, why don't we get back to what we originally came here for: skateboarding."

Before her two friends could object or comment on anything else she walked back to the table. The two human boys relaxed and dashed off with their boards, glad to be free of the awkward situation. Mackenzie and Carter were reluctant to leave Emerald alone with Storm but finally Emerald managed to convince them to go by promising they'd be the first she'd tell if anything happened.

"Do you skateboard?" Emerald asked as soon as her friends had disappeared.

Storm shook his head. "No, not really." He winced as someone came flying by.

"You're not _scared_ are you?" Emerald asked through snickers.

Storm glared at her and puffed his chest out. "Of course not."

"Well, now would be a perfect time to learn." Emerald said smiling mischievously at him.

* * *

><p>Emerald waved goodbye to her friends then started her long walk back to the Marriott. Storm quickly walked up to her.<p>

"You wouldn't mind if I walked you home, would you?" he asked falling into step beside her, despite all the bruises he should've gotten from falling so much in the last hour or so.

Emerald gave him a long sideways glance. "Fine." she finally decided. They walked for a few moments in silence. "So, what'd you think of my friends?" she asked breaking the silence.

"They all seem fine, but…" Storm trailed off, his eyebrows furrowing.

"But what?" Emerald prodded.

"But Anthony seems kind of… strange. I don't know. He gives off this weird vibe." he explained.

"Well, I would've known if he was vampire or werewolf." Emerald said.

"And he, obviously, can't be a witch." Storm finished, still deep in thought.

"I think you're just being paranoid." Emerald nudged his arm playfully. "Anthony's always been that way. Kind of strange, quiet, and mellow. Even as a kid." She quickly switched topics. "So, you like Three Days Grace?" she wondered.

"'Course I do, they're my favorite band of all time." Storm answered.

"Ever been to one of their concerts?"

"Yeah actually, one or two weeks ago. My friend, Tasha, she got me tickets to go see them for my birthday." he explained.

"Oh, happy belated birthday. So, who'd you go with? Tasha?"

"No, she doesn't like them. I know, crazy, right?" Storm chuckled at seeing Emerald's shocked face. "Anyway, I went with my dad. He… doesn't particularly like them either but he was doing it for my sake. He was out of town on the day of my birthday and said he'd make it up to me." Storm grinned. "It was… fun."

"Sounds like you have a good relationship with him." Emerald commented wistfully.

"I kind of have to. He's really the only family I have left. Well, him and Tasha. She's like family to me."

"Oh, so you're mom—" Emerald broke off abruptly, seeing how it affected Storm. His hands balled into fists and his jaw tightened.

"No," he choked out. "She's dead. Killed, really. By a hunter."

These words stirred a memory in Emerald's mind, but she suppressed it, afraid of what she'd find. "I'm sorry." she murmured. "I didn't meant to—"

"What about you?" Storm asked cutting her off. "Family?"

It was Emerald's turn to clench her fists and glare at the sidewalk.

"Adoptive family." she muttered.

"But you live by yourself."

"Yeah, it's called Emancipated Teen. I think you have to be fourteen or fifteen to apply for it."

"Were they really that bad?"

"No." Emerald answered truthfully. "But something happened. To me, I mean. I changed after that. I've never been the same since." Her voice had gotten quiet by the end of her sentence.

"What about your biological parents?" Storm asked.

"Next." Emerald said, seemingly, back to her normal self.

"But that's not fair!" Storm objected.

"Next." she repeated with a smile.

"You know, you're awfully different than your alter ego." Storm commented, knowing that he wouldn't be able to get anything out of her unless she wanted him to.

Emerald shrugged, looking straight ahead. He could tell that she didn't want to talk about this topic either, but it was better than that of her parents. "I had to." she said, so quiet, only the ears of a vampire could catch it. "You aren't exactly like your alter ego either." she told him pointedly.

Storm narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips. "You're not much of a talker are you?"

Emerald took a deep breath, her eyes tightening and looked out across the street at the other pedestrians. "No. I'm still dealing with the pain."

"I suppose my reasons are the same as yours." Storm said switching subjects again. "Maybe altered a bit, but the same."

"We're here." Emerald mumbled looking up.

"Let me walk you to your suite." Storm insisted looking at her. She stared back, thoughts and emotions swimming in the depths of her amber eyes. Thoughts that were whispers, just beyond Storm's hearing range. And emotions that swirled around him, blending together, making him feel almost breathless.

Without a yes or a no, Emerald broke her gaze with him and walked in. Storm followed, figuring her silence was an automatic yes. They didn't talk as they made their way through the lobby and to the elevators, or when the elevator traveled up to her floor, or as they walked down the winding, but angular, hallways to her suite, her home.

Emerald stopped at her door and turned to face Storm. She had her keycard in her hand, but she was fiddling with it, like she didn't want to go inside just yet.

"You give advice, right?" Storm asked.

Emerald looked at him, puzzled. "Um, I supposed it really depends on what you want advice on."

Storm smiled, and put a hand on her door, leaning against it. "Relationships?"

"Well, considering I haven't been in one myself… no." A smile was playing at the edge of her lips, like she was starting to string together what Storm was getting at. "But you're a special case; I'll see what I can do."

"Kissing, then?" asked Storm in a casual tone.

Emerald pressed her lips tightly together, but Storm could tell she was only doing this so she wouldn't start grinning ridiculously. "Well," she started taking a step closer to Storm, "and excuse me for using a movie for the advice you're looking for—but if a girl doesn't want to kiss she'll take her keys and go inside. If she does, however, she'll tinker around with them." Emerald flipped her keycard around in her fingers for good measure.

Storm moved an inch closer to Emerald.

"Check." he said. "Now what?"

"All that's left is the ninety-ten rule." Emerald mumbled her body and soul reacting to the closeness of Storm. "You want to go ninety percent of the way. And I'll go the last ten." she instructed without thinking.

Storm chuckled. "You and I, huh?"

Emerald shook herself and blinked, a blush staining her cheeks. "Oh, I-I meant… I meant the boy and-and girl. The boy should go ninety and the girl the other ten." she quickly amended.

Storm started to lean down. Emerald froze. Just like she'd told him, he went ninety percent of the way. Emerald's lips parted and he could feel her warm breath blow into his face, along with her sweet scent.

"Like this?" he asked in a whisper.

Emerald's hands slowly came up and hovered over the sides of Storm's neck, her fingertips brushing his throat every now and again, sending shivers through his body.

"Yeah," she whispered back, inclining her head. "Like that."

Then, they kissed.

And it was like nothing either of them had ever felt before. Soft, sweet, tender, slow, like a low burning fire. The whole world fell away and it was just the two of them, Emerald and Storm, holding each other. With Emerald's arms wrapped tightly around Storm's neck. With one of Storm's hands entangled in Emerald's long, silky, obsidian locks, the other pressing up against the small of her back bringing her closer to him.

"Oh, Emerald!" someone exclaimed.

Emerald and Storm were brought back down to earth, but the air around them seemed to buzz, and the things currently surrounding them seemed a bit hazy, and unfocused. Their hearts beat at the same fast pace, completely in sync, and the silver cord connecting them rippled, like when you touched the surface of water.

Emerald dazedly looked over at the old woman who was standing on the other side of the hallway. She was a kindly woman who Emerald would occasionally bump into once in a while. She lived, like several suites down. Sometimes Emerald would do favors for her.

"H-hi, Miss Foster." Emerald greeted slightly breathless. Storm could feel the heat radiating from Emerald's flushed cheeks.

"I didn't know you had a boyfriend." Miss Foster said walking up to them with a smile that said, "Well, aren't you going to introduce me?"

"Miss Foster, this is Storm." Emerald aquainted slowly trying to shake the stupor she was in.

"It's nice to meet you." Storm said politely, shaking Miss Foster's hand.

"You've got quite a catch, there young lady." Miss Foster commented winking at Emerald whose face burned an even brighter red. "Well, I guess I'll let you get back to what you were doing." She gave Emerald one of those secretive smiles and headed off to her own suite.

"Oh my God. That was so embarrassing." Emerald mumbled, not meeting Storm's gaze.

"Hey," he said softly.

Emerald looked up at him and he lightly pressed his lips to hers once again. When he pulled away, Emerald was biting her lip, but grinning madly. It was sort of nice to know that he had that kind of effect on her.

"Would you… would you like to come in?" she asked in a small voice.

"I'd love that." Storm answered.

Emerald fumbled around with the keycard, causing Storm to chuckle because this was so unlike her.

"Shut up." she hissed, sliding the card in and turning the knob.

Storm suppressed his snicker. "I didn't say anything."

Emerald turned her head to glare at him before pushing the door open, only to stop short. Her mouth fell open. Someone had totally ransacked the place.

* * *

><p>Emerald took a slow step in, her foot breaking something. She didn't seem to notice. She was too shocked by all of this. No one knew where she lived. None of her friends would ever do this; she'd known them for too long. They <em>wouldn't<em>.

"What happened?" Storm asked standing behind her.

"I-I don't know." Emerald did a quick one-over, going through all the rooms. Her whole suite had been turned upside down. Her dresser drawers and closet were wide open, clothes strewn everywhere, thrown on the ground and over furniture. Speaking of furniture, every single piece had been overturned. Cushions and pillows were scattered around the room, the two beds were a total mess.

But the worst part of it all was the message that was etched into the mirror of the bathroom in refined, yet jagged, letters:

_We know your secret._

**My apologies for not explain how **_**magical**_** and **_**wonderful**_** and absolutely **_**entrancing**_** the kiss was. There's only so many ways you describe something, and I think I'm described-out with all this romance stuff. Now is where it gets exciting! Stay tuned! Oh, and hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	13. Thirteen

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Identity

Emerald fell onto the now, neatly, right side up bed feeling completely exhausted. It hadn't taken her that long to clean up, with Storm's help of course (and a little of the maid's near the end) but just knowing someone out there knew her secret was wearing on her. (Also, she had to pay for the damages done to the mirror. Hopefully they wouldn't ask about the ominous message.)

"What am I going to do?" she groaned, resting the back of her hand on her forehead and closing her eyes.

Storm took a seat on the edge of the opposite bed.

"Well, I don't think that you have to be too worried"—Emerald looked at him like he'd gone crazy, and he hurriedly finished his sentence—"only because if it was the whole Night World you'd be dead already."

"I suppose…" she muttered letting her head fall back onto the pillow again. "Still, I can't have _anyone_ knowing." She turned her head to look at Storm, looking for all the world like she was actually scared. "I don't even know where to begin." She shook her head and closed her eyes again. "They weren't looking for anything… or, rather, they didn't find whatever they were looking for because everything still seemed to be here."

Storm looked over at Emerald and realized for the first time tonight, just how tired she looked. Her skin was slightly pallid under the light of the lamp and beneath her eyes were the beginning of what looked to be purple bruises. They were very light, and almost unnoticeable, but underneath direct light in such a dim room Storm could see them clearly.

"You should get some rest." he told her quietly, slipping off the bed and kneeling next to her. She rolled onto her side and look at him, her eyes half-open. "I'm sure everything will be fine. We'll figure this out together. I won't let any harm come to you." he promised.

A wane smile formed on Emerald's lips and her eyes slowly closed. It wasn't long before her breathing became deep and even. Storm reached up to turn off the light, which didn't hinder his eyesight at all, thankfully.

He could still see how Emerald's ivory skin glowed slightly in the pale moonlight filtering through the windows of the suite. Her hair gleamed. She shifted and a small lock fell across her face.

Storm couldn't stop the urge to reach up, and gently tuck the lock back behind her ear again. Emerald sighed, her eyelids fluttering. Storm drew his hand back and held his breath, hoping he hadn't woken her up. To his relief she didn't, she merely turned over onto her back.

* * *

><p>Emerald slips into blackness, calm, easing, soothing blackness. She can feel the gentle touch of Storm's hand, brushing her hair back behind her ear. She was safe. She knew, with him around, she was safe. She could sleep. Let her mind rest and try to work through all the problems life had just thrown at her.<p>

She knew the risk of letting a vampire go. Especially a vampire that was notorious for his killings. A vampire that, ironically, was her soulmate. She'd heard of humans and vampires, but an ill-famed vampire hunter and a nefarious vampire? Never heard of! Well… not that Emerald knew. Things could be really disconnected up here in Manhattan sometimes.

The hunters would be furious. Some of them were young and only wanted to see the vampires suffer. They were fueled by pure, unadulterated hate and couldn't think about anything else but revenge. In that state of mind one of them, maybe more, could've made a rash decision and told a vampire about her real identity.

Emerald hoped that her fellow hunters hadn't betrayed her like that. Even for the deed that she'd done. They knew well enough just how dangerous the Night World was. It was kill or be killed. One slip and you were dead. She prayed that they'd respect that aspect of their lives, but it was still a strong possibility.

So far, her sleep had been peaceful, dreamless. But worrying about all that was going on and thinking about how the danger factor had just multiplied by tenfold gave rise to past memories Emerald tried so hard to keep hidden. She kept them locked away in the depths of her subconscious. Going to sleep practically gave into your subconscious though.

The thorn barrier slowly untangled itself, like some kind of demonic plant, giving way to all the pain and anger. Pictures flooded behind her eyes like a movie, moving too fast for her to see.

"Emerald," Storm's voice broke through all the chaos, rising above everything. "Wake up." he said. "It's just a dream."

With effort Emerald opened her eyes to meet Storm's gorgeous blue ones. She slowly sat up, taking a deep breath. The barrier slithered back into place, keeping her demons at bay once again.

"Are you okay?" Storm asked taking one of her hands in both of his, his eyebrows puckered in worry.

Emerald took a few more deep breaths and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fi—" She couldn't finish though because Storm had unexpectedly pressed his lips up against hers. Emerald was shocked, at first, at this action, but responded soon after. She marveled at how good his lips felt against hers and how he held her, pressed her body against his.

Storm pulled back a moment giving Emerald a chance to breathe, before he took her wrist and pulled her down onto the floor, onto him. They continued to kiss, but it was slower, less heated.

There was a small breeze and Emerald's back was now pressed up against the floor, with Storm holding himself up over her. They gazed at each other for a silent moment, before Storm lowered himself for another kiss.

For a fleeting moment, the Vigilante side of Emerald screamed that this wasn't like him. Something was terribly wrong, but Emerald shoved these warnings aside. She was enjoying this moment with him! Who cared if it wasn't like him? Love did odd things to you, didn't it? Sometimes made you act a little out of character. What was wrong with that?

This bliss only lasted for another second or so, because just then Emerald felt a sharp pain in her left side. She pulled her head back, her eyebrows furrowing as the pain grew and started to burn. She couldn't lift her head to look at her side because Storm was blocking her view, but she gently moved her hand up. Maybe she could feel what was wrong?

To Emerald's surprise and utter horror she felt Storm's hand, gripping something where the burning was. Which was starting to grow worse and spread throughout her body. Her chest felt tight and it felt like she was being suffocated.

With further investigation, Emerald realized that he was holding his switchblade, half of the blade already sunken into her side. She met his eyes, which were staring down at her, no emotion coming through.

"Why—?" she asked in a weak voice. Her vision swam.

Storm smiled and reached up to caress her cheek. Emerald would've slapped his hand away, but her body had become paralyzed. She couldn't move a finger.

He leaned in close—his breath dancing across her skin—and shoved his knife in deeper. Emerald's back arched slightly and she let out a grunt as pain coursed through her body.

"Because it's my job." he answered in a low voice, as the ceiling of the suite swirled and the lights dimmed.

* * *

><p>With a gasp Emerald flew up, hitting her forehead against Storm's. Storm veered back letting out a growl and putting a hand to his head. Emerald put a hand to hers as well and gritted her teeth.<p>

_It was just a dream. It was just a dream._ She chanted to herself, the residual pain of being stabbed bubbling up. "It was just a dream." she recited out loud this time, almost yelling. "It was just a dream." Adrenaline rushed through her veins, her heart pounding twice as fast. She'd gone into Vigilante mode. She was hyperaware of everything around her.

She could hear Storm's breathing. She could hear soft footsteps in the hallways; hear the buzz of the TV in the next suite. And although it was dark she could clearly see the two beds, the nightstand, the closet, a bird fly past the window outside; the angry, red, neon numbers of the alarm clock glared at her.

Storm moved toward her. "Emerald," he asked hesitantly, putting a hand on her shoulder. She involuntarily jerked away, looking over at him, that smirk on his lips flashing behind her eyes. She quickly looked away again. Her left side ached.

"I'm not going to hurt you." he declared softly, but with conviction. The adrenaline started wearing off. Emerald's heart slowed and her eyes drooped. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked quietly taking a cautious step toward her.

Emerald shook her head, staring blankly at the sheets of the bed.

Storm took another step and put a knee up on the edge of her bed. "May I?" he asked. Without a word she scooted over to make room for him. He climbed up next to her and reached for her. Emerald flinched and Storm's hand froze for a second before continuing forward. He rested it on her shoulder, massaging it.

Emerald's lower lip shook, and when she looked at Storm her eyes glittered with tears, but nothing fell. Without warning, she threw herself into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly. She started to dry-sob, her body shaking from the force. Storm held her close to him, whispering comforting words, kissing her hair, and rubbing her back soothingly.

Storm didn't know how long it was, but finally her crying stopped, her breathing becoming low, her heart slow. Her arms became slack and her head rested on his shoulder. Storm slid off the bed, careful not to jostle Emerald and went to untangle her arms when her muscles went rigid.

"Don't leave." she said. Storm wasn't sure if she was awake or not, because her eyes were closed and it didn't look like she had just spoken, but the tone of her voice was heart wrenching.

Storm slid back onto the bed, Emerald still in his arms, and lay down with her head resting in the crook of his neck, her silky hair tickling his skin. He focused on Emerald's breathing, her heartbeat and before he knew it his eyes had closed and he was drifting.

* * *

><p>They drove up to Storm's big mansion. Emerald's stomach turned and her heart fluttered behind her ribcage. This house—<em>this<em> house, was just so familiar. It was bringing about unwanted feelings, unwanted memories, unwanted images. Clenching her teeth, she fought to push them down. Even so, the overwhelming feeling of déjà vu washed over her.

"I don't know. I mean, I don't think—" She broke off, chewing on her lip, and looking out the window at his house.

Storm put a hand on hers and squeezed gently. "My dad isn't home right now. Even if he was, I don't think you'd be in any danger. My dad isn't the violent type. But you can meet Tasha." he told her encouragingly.

"Couldn't we have just stayed at my place?" she asked.

"I think you need a little time away from there."

They looked at each other for a long moment, the car humming, still on.

"Okay." Emerald finally agreed meekly. She got out and shut the door as Storm turned off his car and followed Emerald. He opened the front door for her and she walked in, slowly, taking it all in. She stopped momentarily, looking, stroking the door frame. It looked intact, it looked like no one had every kicked it in before, but that could easily be fixed by a professional and have it look as if nothing had ever happened.

"Emerald?" Storm asked.

She continued in silently.

The foyer was huge, amazingly huge. The floor was white marble that was so shiny it acted like a mirror reflecting back Emerald's wide, amber eyes. There was a stairway a few feet away, on the left wall. The wood of the railing was dark, but she wasn't sure what kind of tree it came from. To her right was a large archway that led into what looked like a living room.

A girl was standing at the top of the stairway. She had long, slick, silvery hair and pervasive rose petal-pink eyes. She stood tall and proud, with her arms crossed over her chest, her mouth a straight line.

She walked down the steps at a human pace, the tension and awkwardness growing with every step. When she finally made it to the ground floor the air was so thick, you could've sliced it with a knife.

"Um, Emerald," Storm started a little quietly. "This is Tasha. Tasha—" He broke off on account of Tasha holding her hand up to stop him.

"I got it." she said. "Emerald." She turned her eyes on Emerald and held the hand she'd held up out for Emerald to take. "Pleasure."

Emerald took it. "Ditto."

Tasha jerked her hand out of Emerald's, gave Storm a scathing look and then promptly ascended the stairs. There was the click of a door and silence. Emerald turned to look at Storm who was rubbing the back of his neck.

"Charming." Emerald commented dryly.

Storm's eyes flickered up the stairs like he was afraid Tasha was going to come down and attack Emerald for her sarcastic comment.

"She's usually not this…" he trailed off his eyes flickering toward the stairs again. "She's a great person once you get to know her. She'll warm up to you. Trust me." Storm smiled. "Why don't we go up to my room?" he suggested heading up the stairs before Emerald could answer, giving her no choice but to follow.

The first thing she noticed was the backpack and papers flooding his desk as she walked in.

"Homework?" she asked pointing, giving him a weird look.

"Yeah, I go to school. Is that so shocking?" he asked chuckling.

"Just a little." she admitted. She supposed it made sense….

"It's good for feeding."

Emerald looked at him, wanting to laugh, but she knew he wasn't kidding. Instead she continued to look around.

"Fancy room." she mumbled walking up to his desk, curious to what classes he took. Her eyebrows rose when she saw what his homework was about. "Calculus. Nice." She turned to look at him.

Storm gave her a crooked smile, eyes slightly narrowed. "Are you mocking me?" he asked in an offended tone. Emerald smiled secretively. Storm crossed his arms. "And just what are _you_ taking, little miss smarty pants?"

Emerald's smile grew bigger. "_AP_ Calculus, thank you very much."

Storm's eyes narrowed even more and he huffed.

Emerald laughed and turned back to his desk. There were normal things you'd find on a teenager's desk and then there was a picture frame that was lying picture down. She carefully took it and picked it up so she could see it. But what she saw was not what she was expecting.

Her stomach dropped, her heart turned to lead, all the color drained from her face, it seemed as if her whole world were crumbling around her. She resisted the urge to drop the photo in her hand and instead gently set it back down on Storm's desk.

It made sense now. The feeling of knowing him when they first met. Not just because of the bond, but because he looked exactly like his mother, right down the color and hue of his hair. And the feeling of seeing this house before… it all made sense!

That wasn't exactly a good thing, though.

Being connected, Storm could feel the sudden change in Emerald. He came over to stand next to her.

"Oh, you don't have to do that." he said, taking the picture and standing it upright.

"That's your mom?" Emerald choked.

"Uh, yeah. Are you okay?" Storm turned his attention to her.

Emerald started nodding but it turned into a headshake as she slowly backed away. The picture of Storm's mom stared at her accusingly. Storm stepped in front of her, blocking the view of the picture. He put his hands firmly on her shoulders. His eyebrows were furrowed, his eyes full on concern and worry.

"Emerald, what is it?" he asked. "What's wrong." His eyes searched hers; he started prodding through the bond, wanting desperately to know what was wrong with her.

Emerald shook his hands off and backed up even more until she hit the wall near the door. Storm followed her and tried putting his arms around her again but she shoved him away.

"Tell me you hate me." Emerald cried, turning her head away, not even being able to look at him anymore.

"What?" Storm asked appalled, and almost hysterical, at her statement. He walked back up to her. "Emerald—" He broke off when she shoved him away again.

"Tell me… tell me you never want to see me again." she requested through gritted teeth.

Storm walked up to her for the third time, not going to take no for an answer. She tried to shove him away but he took her wrists and tried to immobilize her. Of course, Emerald being Emerald she struggled against him, but finally he got her stop.

"Tell me what's wrong." Storm ordered in a hard voice. She shook her head, biting her bottom lip so hard she drew blood. "Look at me! Tell me!" he yelled shaking her.

Finally, she met his eyes. They were brimmed with tears, real tears. Storm searched her eyes looking for answers, but Emerald was locking him out. Bringing her walls down; cutting off their connection, their bond. Not completely, but so much so that both of them started to feel hollow, disconnected.

Her voice was numb as she said those four words that could possibly tear them apart for good. Four words that Storm never thought she'd ever say. Four words that tore Storm to pieces.

"_I_ killed your mother."

**Bam!**** Shocker! Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	14. Fourteen

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: Title is loosely based off the song, but not completely because they're a lot of differences with this chapter and the lyrics. But it's true what they say, "**_**When your heart breaks, no, it don't breakeven.**_**" Hope you enjoy!**

Breakeven

Storm let go of Emerald's wrists. She let her arms fall to her sides. They stared at each other. Storm's eyes full of hurt, pain, betrayal, shock, anger. He started to shake his head, blinking back tears.

"No," said Storm going into instant denial. He couldn't believe that his soulmate had killed his mother! No. It didn't seem possible! "That's not true. This is just some… sick joke." He looked at Emerald as if to confirm it, but Emerald stared back, stone-faced.

Storm's jaw tightened, the muscles in his whole body rippling, his hands balling into fists.

He shook with rage.

Storm turned with vampire speed and went over to his desk throwing off all his papers and pencils, and all the junk on top, off with a loud clatter. Emerald flinched as his hands slammed down on the wood surface, cracking slightly under all the pressure.

Storm's head hung; tears stung his eyes but he bit his tongue to keep them back. He was _not_ going to let her see him cry. He lifted his head and looked at the picture of his mother. Emerald—_Emerald_—had killed her without sympathy, without feeling, in cold blood. She was… heartless. She was… a monster.

"I hate you." Storm finally said his voice almost inaudible. Emerald, however, could hear him crystal clear. He was saying what she'd wanted him to say a moment ago. "I never want to see you again." he continued. He paused before turning to look at her. She winced under his gaze. "And if you _ever_ cross my path again, I will kill you. I swear it."

Emerald took a small step forward. "Let me explain—" she tried.

"Out." Storm interrupted quietly, wariness creeping up on him.

"Please—"

"Out!"

"Storm—"

"Just get out!" Storm roared. "You killed her! You killed my mother! That's unforgiveable!"

Emerald looked at him for a moment longer before turning and dashing out.

With a snarl Storm started tearing up his room. He needed to let off steam, he needed to get all his anger out, he wanted the burning, aching pain in his chest to stop! His soulmate had killed his mother! His soulmate!

In the end, Tasha opened the door to find his room in tatters, the curtains were ripped, his bed sheets were in ribbons, there were fist-sized holes decorating the walls, Storm's desk was in splinters and in the middle of this tornado sat Storm, curled into a ball, holding the only thing that hadn't been destroyed: the picture of his family before Cherry had died.

He hugged it tightly to his chest. Tears streamed down his face.

Tasha carefully picked her way through the debris and to Storm. He looked up at her when she came and she slowly knelt down next to him, taking him into her arms and comforting him.

"Mom didn't do anything wrong." Storm cried.

"I know she didn't." Tasha whispered rubbing his arm comfortingly.

"What am I going to do?" he asked in a whisper pulling back to look up at Tasha. A steady stream of tears still falling down his face.

Tasha opened her mouth to try and answer him but stopped herself.

She loved him.

She wanted him back, but Emerald was his soulmate. She could never bring herself to tear them apart, even if Emerald did kill his mother. That was the past though; she had to be regretful, right? But Storm would be too angry to see that now. He had to cool off.

_Then what?_ Tasha asked herself. Knowing Storm he'd still be furious. Who wouldn't? You couldn't just put something this big behind you and move on like nothing had happened! It wasn't human nature and it wasn't right. Could they work it out, maybe?

Tasha shook her head, her hair shimmering. "I-I don't—" She broke off as Storm leaned up, pressing his lips to hers. Tasha's mind blanked for a moment. She automatically responded to his kiss, remembering when they had been dating. All the wonderful times they'd had together.

Tasha wanted him back! She wanted him _so_ much. She loved him. How could she deny it now?

She loved him with all her heart.

And she wanted him all to herself.

* * *

><p>Emerald sprinted back to the Marriott. She didn't stop for anything. She'd ram into people. With luck, she came to crosswalks just as they changed to walk. She was breathing heavily, her lungs and throat on fire when she got the Marriott. Her eyes stung and her heart felt like it'd been shattered into a million pieces.<p>

Emerald slammed the door to her suite and went into her bedroom, sitting down on the edge, near the nightstand. After a moment of silence in darkness she turned the lamp on. She blinked rapidly as her eyes adjusted to the blinding light. Something wet slid down her cheek and into the corner of her mouth. It was warm and salty.

She blinked again and more of those foreign things slid down her cheeks. She reached up and caught one just as it squeezed itself out of the corner of her eye. She pulled her hand away to examine it.

_Tears._ She thought. She was crying. Four years of unimaginable pain and torture, she'd never shed a single tear. Now some vampire boy (a _boy_ of all things!) comes along and she starts spouting like a sprinkler in the summer.

This only made Emerald angry. She wasn't going to let some boy come in and break her heart. He wouldn't let her explain! She had always felt bad about killing Cherry. Always. Since the moment their door was kicked in. But Storm would never listen to her now. It was too late.

More tears leaked from Emerald's eyes and she stood, stalking into the bathroom, roughly wiping her tears away with the back of her hand.

She rested her hands on either side of the sink, her head bowed, eyes closed as she tried to take control again.

"They hurt you." she said out loud. "They tortured you." She was trying to remind herself of what happened. Turn off the emotions. Emotions were what would get her killed. "They don't deserve to live. They don't deserve to kill us. They will _not_ torture anyone else. You won't let them."

Emerald was burning.

With a sharp intake of breath, her head snapped up and she looked at herself in the mirror.

She wasn't burning, she realized. No, far from it. She was freezing. Ice blazed through her veins, and it felt surprisingly… good. Behind her crystallized eyes, she could see the change, feel it within her. She welcomed this coldness, it numbed all her other emotions, leaving only what felt like a high. A never ending rush of adrenaline.

Emerald was powerful.

Emerald was on top of the world.

She could do anything she wanted without any consequences.

A wicked smile formed on her lips, her eyes flashing dangerously. The only evidence she'd been crying were dry tear marks running down her face.

Emerald walked back to her bedroom, turning out the light and lying down on the bed. She closed her eyes, thinking for sure this high would wear off and by morning, be gone. This was just a one-time thing.

Wrong again.

It doesn't fade or dissipate, it just keeps coming, charging through her body… and she welcomes it.

* * *

><p>Adrian sat across from his son, staring at him intently, arms crossed. Storm looked back, his face blank, his eyes unwavering. Tasha was sitting quietly in one of the chairs off to the side, looking down awkwardly at her shoes.<p>

Tasha lifted her head, opening her mouth to say something to the two boys, but lost her nerve and stopped, dropping her head again. They'd been at this for at least two hours now.

Okay, so Adrian had a reason to question Storm after coming home and finding Storm's whole room trashed. Adrian was having Storm pay for all the fixes and new stuff.

But staring at each other for two hours! That was a little too extreme for Tasha. If they wanted to work this out, they needed to talk! Not stare at each other. Unfortunately, Storm was refusing. He wouldn't say anything or give anything away.

"I don't have all day, Storm. Tell me: _what happened_?" Adrian finally asked again.

Storm slowly shook his head without saying a word.

"Storm, just tell him. He already knows about the girl anyway." Tasha coaxed. "You guys can't avoid this forever! Don't be so stubborn!" She stood and started out the living room. "Boys are so obtuse!" she growled.

Adrian uncrossed his arms and sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "She's right, you know." he said. Storm looked the way Tasha had left.

"Yeah, I know." he muttered grudgingly looking back at his dad.

"So… what happened?" Adrian asked for the hundredth time.

Storm stood. "She did it." he said through tight lips.

Adrian sat back, his eyebrows furrowing. "Who did what?"

"Emerald," Storm choked out, it was actually difficult to say her name, "killed Mom." With that Storm went back upstairs to clean up his room.

* * *

><p>She was like a forest fire, blazing through everything, taking no prisoner's, uncontrollable. Her killing streak ranged from 4 to 6 vampires almost every night. You'd be surprised how many vampires fed every night in Manhattan.<p>

She's out all night, sometimes leaves during school lunch, looking for them. One of the times she was forced indoors was when she was working, though. She needed some way to pay the bills, right?  
>Her friends realized something's wrong, but they're afraid to say anything. They're extremely worried about her, but they don't know how to bring it up. She always has this stony expression plastered on her face like she'll kill you if you every tried to talk to her. She even dresses differently.<p>

Instead of her band tees, she wears blouses and spaghetti-strap tank-tops. Instead of her all-star converse, she wears 2 to 3 inch stilettos. Instead of a backpack she carried a briefcase. Added to the mix was a long, black pea-jacket (the things she'd wear had she been hunting).

It was scary, so scary that they left her to sit by herself at their used-to-be table. They couldn't stand her cold demeanor, or the way that she was almost never there anymore, the way she wouldn't talk to them very much when she _was_ there.

It didn't really matter to her though because she wasn't Emerald. Not anymore. Emerald was gone. She was The Vigilante now. And the Vigilante couldn't have friends. They were just baggage. They'd weigh her down, and if they ever got into any trouble with the Night World it would be her fault.

At the end of the school day when the bell rang all the kids dashed out like they usually did. What was odd was that the school emptied out a lot faster than Emerald remembered. Even the teacher in her classroom had left before she was done packing her things up.

Now on high alert, Emerald walked out of the room and into the halls. Her heels clicked against the linoleum floors, echoing off the lockers.

Emerald went to her locker and organized what she needed to take home and what she didn't.

"Hello, Anthony," she greeted monotoned, closing her locker and looking over at him.

"Hey," he returned, except a little more cheerfully.

Emerald started down the hall without a goodbye or anything. Anthony followed.

"Did you want something?" she asked stopping to look at him.

"Oh, nothing of importance." Anthony supplied shrugging. "You changed your look." he provided.

Emerald turned away and started walking down the hallways again. "You're wasting my time." she told him.

After a few moments of silence and no signal of him following, Emerald figured Anthony had gone off somewhere on his own, finally leaving her alone to wallow by herself.

But just as she thought this, an arm snaked around her waist, the other coming up to hold a cloth, heavily soaked with chloroform, over her mouth and nose. Emerald tried flipping him, but he obviously knew what was going to happen and prevented it. She struggled against him, but he held her tightly; tighter than she thought Anthony could. He was strong. Like vampire or werewolf strong.

However, that just wasn't possible. She would've known if Anthony was a vampire or werewolf.

All the while she was breathing in this toxic chloroform. It burned her throat and nose, her chest had ignited into flames and her eyes stung. She coughed and in turn inhaled even more. Her vision blurred, her head pounded, the lights seemed to blazed overhead like the sun.

She had to think of a way out of this and quick. Who knew what Anthony wanted with her. Who knew what would happen to her if she let herself pass out.

So, she faked it. Her struggles became weaker and weaker and finally she forced her body to go limp. It felt wrong, but this was the only other way she could think of to get out of this.

Her briefcase slipped out of her limp hand and clattered to the floor. Anthony removed the cloth from her face and nice, pure oxygen rushed into her lungs. The flames continued, though, licking her throat. Making it impossible to swallow.

Emerald waited another moment before she snatched up her case and flung it into Anthony's face. It connected with his nose, making a crunch. He howled and let Emerald go. She got to her feet, and without another thought or word, she dashed toward the entrance/exit. She didn't hear any footsteps of pursuit.

Even so, she didn't look back, she didn't stop. When she got the doors, she burst through and almost fell down the steps and merged with the traffic on the sidewalks, power walking. Her breath wheezed, every time she inhaled it felt as if she was swallowing needles. Her headache grew worse with each step she took. The people around Emerald avoided her, spanning around her in a small, but noticeable circle.

"Emerald!" a familiar voice rose through the crowd. Emerald's heart lurched in her chest, before beating double-time. No, she couldn't let him catch her. There was no way anyone was going to help her. There were just too many cons he could pull off, too many lies. "Emerald, come back!" he shouted again.

She started running, pushing past people, almost tripping and falling flat on her face. Then she came to a crosswalk. Cars were still zooming past. Emerald leaned against the pole, breathing heavily, each breath more painful than the next.

"Change. Change." she muttered over and over, looking up every-so-often to see if the light had changed yet.

Anthony had stopped calling out, but Emerald was afraid that was because he was close to her now. He was closer to catching her.

Thankfully, the little white man replaced the red hand. The crowd waiting spilled out into the street, Emerald following quickly, but the chloroform and running had gotten to her. She'd hit a wall.

Her knees buckled without her permission and she collapsed to the ground, catching herself with her hands. She coughed and dry-heaved in the middle of the street, unable to move.

The red hand flickered warning of cars to come. Still Emerald didn't move.

Horns honked and people from the sidewalks screamed, "Get up! Move!"

Emerald held back her body-racking upheavals and tried to stand, but she was too weak. Her vision blacked for a moment and she hit the ground again.

The red hand blinked once more before becoming solid. The lights turned green. No cars moved yet…. More horns honked, but Emerald just couldn't move and no one was helping her.

On the other side of the street, a red convertible revved its engine impatiently before squeezing around the cars in front of him and zooming straight toward where Emerald happened to be. When the driver saw her, he didn't stop, he simply slapped his hand down on the horn.

Emerald struggled to push herself to her knees, only to look to her right and come face to face with the bright, glaring headlights of the red convertible.

**Sorry for the delay, school started and I'm taking three AP classes. I'll try to update tomorrow night (because when I can't write for five whole days, when I**** can, I write like a madwoman).**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	15. Fifteen

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Delirium

Someone slammed into Emerald at the last second, knocking her out of the way. The guy in the convertible screeched to a stop and swerved slightly away from the two teens still on the side of the road, right next to the sidewalk.

Emerald was sprawled on her back, the sounds around her fading in and out. Her vision blurred before clearing and then blurred again. She looked over at the man in the convertible as he started yelling and shaking his fist.

"Watch it!" he shouted followed by a cuss word and then him flipping the bird before speeding off once again.

Emerald looked up at her "savior." She couldn't see his face, it was too bright. Everything was bright, shining, light. She closed her eyes to get away from the blinding light and let herself fall away into darkness.

* * *

><p>When she woke again, she was lying on a bed in a familiar-looking suite. In fact, it was her suite at the Marriott. Her body ached all over, her throat and chest didn't hurt as much anymore, but there was a slight stinging every time she breathed in and out. Her breath was raspy and quick. And the ice water than had been running through her veins was now gone.<p>

She turned her head and to her surprise saw Storm leaning against the headboard on the other bed. His arms were crossed tightly over his chest and he was glaring straight ahead of him, a permanent scowl on his face.

Emerald turned her head back to face the ceiling. She swallowed and winced as knives ran down her throat.

"My parents were in high school when they fell in love." Emerald started, not really speaking to Storm in particular. Storm's head turned to look over at her. She continued to stare at the ceiling. "They were only eighteen when they had me." She went on. "A couple of months after I was born my dad found out about the Night World. Vampires. He… wanted immortality. And they gave it to him. Just like that—" Her voice faltered and she held her breath, keeping back tears.

Her front came up. She swallowed hard, ignoring the pain, and rolled her eyes. "He disappeared after that." Storm could tell she was trying hard not to let this bother her. "And… I guess I was too much for my mom." Her voice became quiet again. "I, uh, was given away. That's when Alecia and Alan adopted me. Nice, sweet people. Good parents. Life was great for thirteen years. I had parents that cared for me and loved me. I had two little sisters that I absolutely adored.

"Then I turned fourteen and everything changed. My dad had come looking for me. He kidnapped me." Emerald paused, composing herself, her hands balling into fists, her stomach tightening at the memory. "I don't know what happened after that." she murmured her voice sounding far away. "It's really all a blur. There was pain. Hunger. Biting. Lots of biting….

"The next thing I can recall is a man. He was a hunter. He was older than the usual you see now. Probably in his early twenties. He rescued me. He'd seen me running errands for my dad and his vampire buddies, knew something was up. If it wasn't for him, I don't think I would've ever made it out there.

"I was going through a lot. He seemed like the only sane thing in my life at the time. And I wanted them to pay for what they did to me." Bitterness and hatred seeped into her words. "I wanted to kill my father and his friends for doing that to me. Kill all vampires for just being. They were cruel monsters that killed and tortured for fun." Emerald paused. "This man, he taught me. About the Night World, how to kill vampires, werewolves." Emerald shook her head at this, and bit her lip. "I was young. I didn't know what I was doing, all I knew was I wanted _revenge_.

"He told me that I was doing something good. I was saving someone from getting killed. And he kicked in the door." Storm flinched at those words. Here it came. "I didn't want to do it. I really didn't. It felt wrong. But… but he convinced me. He played off the grief I was feeling. The malice I was feeling toward your kind and convinced me. I went back to Alecia and Alan after that.

"They'd been looking for me for that whole year. They never gave up. They didn't want to believe I was dead. They were just great adoptive parents." A wane smile formed on Emerald's face. "It broke my heart to cut them out like that." she whispered. The smile faded and her tone became dark again. "But they were wrong. I _had_ died. On the inside. I wasn't their Emerald anymore." Emerald stopped there. She waited in a tense silence for Storm's response.

"How do you know so much about your parents?" he finally asked simply out of curiosity.

"My father told me," she managed through clenched teeth.

"Is this supposed to make me feel sorry for you?"

Emerald turned her head to look at him. "Is it working?"

The edge of Storm's lips twitched, but he took control of himself and his face went back to that scowl.

Emerald sighed and turned her head back. "You should've just let that car hit me." she said quietly. When Storm didn't say anything she continued. "Could've made it look like an accident."

"What are you talking about?" Storm demanded, finally looking over at her.

"My death. You swore you'd kill me if we ever crossed paths again, remember?" Storm hopped off the bed and stood over Emerald. Emerald smiled and sat up, one of her legs hanging over the side of the bed. "So kill me."

Storm reached forward and grabbed a fistful of Emerald's hair. It wasn't rough, but it wasn't soft either. Instinctively she reached back and grabbed his wrist. They had a stare down.

Emerald's heart started fluttering in her chest and emotions she wished were nonexistent well up inside her with Storm being this close.

"I should." Storm spat his eyes sparking with energy for a second. Then he eyed Emerald like she was his prey (which she probably was). "I could…" he trailed off as he let go of her hair and ran the tips of his fingers down her face. Her jaw tightened, her stomach doing flip-flops, those emotions hitting her full force now. "I could strangle you." Storm finally said putting his hand on the side of her throat. "Or snap your neck."

Emerald didn't say a word. Storm removed his hand from her neck, his other hand pulling out his pocket knife. Her dream came the forefront of her mind and she tried not to cringe away from the silver blade, glinting viciously in the lamp light.

Storm gently ran the blade from Emerald's temple down to the base of her throat. Anger flared up and Emerald shoved Storm back, standing up to face him.

"Well, if you're going to kill me, then just get it over with!" she shouted lividly.

Storm spun her around, holding the knife against her throat.

"I could slit your throat." he murmured in her ear. Emerald's hand balled into fists. Now that she thought of it, the thought of dying didn't seem pleasant. Especially after that horrible dream she'd had of Storm being her killer. Would he do it quickly? Or would he let vengeance fuel him and make it slow and painful?

Just thinking about that made her heart go into a frenzy. Emerald closed her eyes and tried to calm it down, not wanting to show Storm that she was afraid.

"Or maybe"—Storm brought his knife out in front and held the tip of it, hovering, over Emerald's chest—"I could kill you like you killed my mother."

Emerald forced her body to relax.

Here it came.

She was sure.

It wasn't like she hadn't been stabbed before. The burning faded after a while. This burning would certainly fade as she did.

Her eyes snapped open when Storm pushed her forward, pocketed his knife, and started for the door.

Emerald followed, tears brimming her eyes. "Why?" she screamed at him. "Why don't you just get it over with! To torture me?"

Storm turned with his speed. Emerald gasped and pressed her back to the wall as Storm came forward. His hands slammed into the wall, inches away from either side of her head. She stared at him, wide-eyed, breath ragged. Storm was breathing hard, his head slightly bowed, some of his hair falling perfectly into his eyes, his eyes dark with grief and hatred.

"Because I'm giving you the mercy that you didn't give my mother." he answered in a low voice. With those last words, he turned and exited, the door sliding closed with a final click.

Emerald blinked and more of that salty water spilled from her eyes. She slid down and pulled her knees to her chest, chewing on her lip, a steady stream of tears rolling down her face.

* * *

><p>There was a soft knock on her door. Emerald's eyes opened, she looked at the clock. Who would be looking for her at this time of night? The knock came again and Emerald threw the blankets off her and slipped off the bed.<p>

She turned on the bedroom light and walked to the door, looking through the little peephole.

Storm.

A little shocked Emerald hesitantly opened the door. Storm came in and before she could do anything, much less ask what he was doing here at this time, his lips were crushed against hers. One of his hands tangling in her long, dark hair, his free arm wrapping around her waist, bringing her closer to him.

"Storm—" Emerald tried. "Storm—" She put a hand firmly on his chest and pushed. "What-what are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm sorry." he breathed. "I was angry. I mean, you can understand, can't you?" Emerald nodded her eyes heedful. "But I've had time to think about it." Storm went on. "You're my soulmate. It's next to impossible to stay away from you. I love you, Emerald."

Emerald was still cautious. This was weird. This wasn't the Storm she knew. Could this be another one of those dreams? But it felt so real! The arm around her waist. The hand gently interwoven in her hair. The slight coldness of his body seeping through her thin shirt.

Seeing the look on her face, Storm removed his hand from her hair and stroked her cheek with his thumb. His eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"You trust me, don't you?" he asked.

Emerald nodded mutely.

The smile returned and he leaned forward to press his lips against hers again. Emerald responded and ran her fingers through Storm's thick, soft hair.

Emerald broke away for air, and Storm moved his lips to her neck. He paused after a moment. Unbeknownst to Emerald, liquid silver flooded into his eyes and his canines elongated to razor sharp points. With a chuckle, he sunk his canines deep into her flesh.

To Storm's satisfaction she gasped.

"Storm…?" she asked her voice faint.

He ignored her and continued to drink. Even when Emerald's eyes drooped and she feebly tried to push him away. Even when he heard her heart stutter. Even when she could no longer hold herself up and collapsed in his arms.

* * *

><p>Tasha took a deep breath.<p>

She was standing outside of Storm's door. She needed to talk to him about what had happened a couple of days ago. Right now she was giving herself a pep talk, trying to build her confidence up. She hated that she was going to have to talk to him about this, but she felt it was right.

Taking yet another deep breath, Tasha reached up to knock on the door and regretted it as soon as she did, but it was too late now.

"Come in," Storm's voice sounded hoarsely.

Eyebrows furrowing, instantly worried about him, Tasha opened the door and poked her head in.

"Did-did I catch you at a bad time?" she stuttered softly.

Storm, who was sitting on his new bed, smiled and shook his head. "No, I'm fine." The bags under his eyes told Tasha otherwise. Even so, she still needed to talk to him. It had to be now or never. She stepped in and closed the door behind her. His room had been totally redecorated since his breakdown. It was kind of weird seeing all the new stuff. She was so used to the old.

Tasha waved Storm down as he started to get up, and walked over to him, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

Storm shifted positions, sitting next to her.

"Is something wrong?" he asked setting his hand on hers. Tasha paused and gulped before finally looking over at him with a sad smile. "You're breaking up with me, aren't you?" he asked removing his hand.

Tasha nodded and turned away as tears formed in her eyes. "Yeah," She chuckled and wiped her eyes. "Yeah, I guess I am." She turned to face Storm again. "I just don't think it's going to work. I mean… I-I love you—" It pained Tasha to say these next words, but she could never have Storm blaming himself for her unhappiness whenever she saw him with Emerald. As long as he was happy, she was happy. "I love you like a brother." she managed to choke out. "That's what I've known since we first broke up."

Storm nodded slowly. "I understand." he mumbled.

Tasha smiled and got up to leave before she could burst into tears. It tore at her heart to let him go when he was hers. He had been all hers!

But it was the right thing to do. Soulmates shouldn't be ripped apart. She'd seen it from her parents, and she'd seen it from Storm's parents.

"Tasha," said Storm, stopping her half-way through the door. "This wouldn't have anything to do with Emerald, would it?"

Tasha's lips curled up into a small smile as the dam broke and tears started to fall from her eyes. "You guys are _soulmates_. You belong together." she whispered. "Besides, what I said was true. I've _always_ loved you, Storm. But now all I'll ever see you as is a brother." Before he could say more Tasha bolted out, leaving Storm sitting there confused.

* * *

><p>The door to Emerald's suite flung open, the handle marking the wall. Emerald was thrown in afterward, hitting the floor with a yelp.<p>

Bloodied and battered, she coughed and convulsed in agony before struggling to her hands and knees, her body throbbing in pain. One of the two guys chuckled and she painfully turned to face them.

"That was fun," one of them commented smiling, "we should do this again."

****Okay, guys, my new schedule allows for posting on Fridays and Saturdays, so…. You won't be seeing me for another five days. Hope you enjoyed!****

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	16. Sixteen

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Casanova

The door slammed closed, leaving Emerald sitting there, on the floor, in the darkness.

_Fitting,_ Emerald thought bitterly, pushing herself to her feet, wincing every time she moved. She leaned heavily against the wall and stumbled toward the bathroom. She flicked the light on and closed the door.

The cut on her cheek was shallow, slowly oozing blood. There were a few purple-ish bruises already forming on her arms. Emerald lifted her shirt and grimaced. A giant purple-green bruise decorated her whole left side. She'd have to be careful with that one. The gentlest touch and it would send a surge of pain all over her body.

She slowly moved her shirt back into place.

There were also some bruises on her legs, but they weren't bad either. It was really the injury on her side that was the worst (and possibly bruised ribs as well). Thankfully it wasn't bad… this time.

With all that had been going on with Storm, Emerald had let the fact that a group of vampires knew her identity slip her mind. Now it was coming back to bite her. Fortunately it was just those few, but who knew how long that would last? Who knew how long they'd enjoy seeing her pain before they got bored and turned her over to the Night World?

Or worse.

They'd decide to kill her. And from what she saw tonight it wasn't going to quick. It wasn't going to painless.

Emerald leaned forward, careful not to let her side touch the counter, and turned her head to the right, examining her neck. No sign of bite marks. Of course it had only been a dream. She should've known that Storm would never forgive her that easily. Even if they were soulmates. He was stubborn, and she had killed his mother when he was sixteen after all.

Storm had been absolutely right: it was unforgivable.

But more importantly, what was she going to do about these vampires? There were way too much for her to handle by herself and almost all of them were strong telepaths.

Emerald shuddered at the memory of being blasted over and over again.

She couldn't go crawling back to the other hunters like this. It was too demeaning. Besides they probably wouldn't help her anyway. She'd let the Reaper go. _The Reaper_. In a hunter's eyes, that too, was unforgivable.

What was she going to do?

* * *

><p>"We should go over there." Carter whispered even though the three of them were in a crowded cafeteria with a million and six conversations going on at once. Emerald sat two tables away, slumped over the top, her head resting in her folded arms. Her back was to them.<p>

"No," Danny objected. "Why should we?"

Carter smacked his arm. "Don't be an inconsiderate jerk." she chided.

"Hey, he's not inconsiderate." Mackenzie stood up for him. "He just doesn't want to go over and talk to her at the moment."

"Do you?" Carter asked looking hopefully at Mackenzie.

Her friend shook her head, her hair swinging. "No way."

"Uh! Why not?" Carter whined. "You guys aren't very good friends." she huffed.

"No, _she's_ not the good friend." Danny retorted loudly, not caring if anyone, including Emerald, heard him.

Carter glanced in Emerald's direction, she hadn't seemed to notice. Then she turned back to her two other friends (about to be ex-friends) and glared at them, the embers in her eyes blazing.

"Don't say that! She's just going through a really rough patch is all! And she is wearing the same clothes she used to wear too!" She defended vehemently.

"Like that matters!" Danny exclaimed just as Mackenzie echoed Carter's words, "A 'rough patch'?" Mackenzie continued. "First she goes all… all weird, commando Barbie on us, and then this!" She pointed at Emerald. "This… depressing, moping person. Like some kind of crazy bipolar person! I wouldn't call that a 'rough patch.'"

"Yeah, why should we help her? _She_ pushed us out! _She_ should be the one coming and talking about us. Apologizing to us!" Danny shouted, his face twisting into a mask that Carter or Mackenzie had never seen before it. Danny was rarely one to get angry; he'd always been the laziest, level-headed—if you will—one in the group. This was majorly out of character.

"Don't act like you don't care!" Carter shouted back. "She's been our friend for years now! We can't just turn our backs on her in her darkest moment! That's _not_ what friends are for." Mackenzie and Danny stared at her unwavering. "Guys, come on…." she begged quietly.

The bell rang and they both got up to leave.

"At least—" Carter started. Danny and Mackenzie stopped and waited. "At least think about it. I mean, she's still our friend."

They continued to class without a word.

Carter sighed and looked back over at the table Emerald was sitting at. She was still sitting there. For a moment, with her heart pounding nervously in her chest, Carter thought she could go talk to her, but then, Emerald stood slowly and precisely. Carter watched as she walked off, and if she wasn't mistaken, she walked off with a limp.

* * *

><p>He'd been watching her. All week. Ever since he'd learned the horrible news. The ironic, yet horrendous coincidence.<p>

Yes, it was a bit stalker-ish, but he wanted to know, wanted to _see_ from himself. Was she really this bad? Was she really this hunter that killed cold-heartedly? Was she really the girl who killed his loving wife, Cherry?

Thus far, his observations didn't lean toward anything hunter-like. He couldn't picture this small, petite, seventeen-year-old girl as one of the most infamous hunters in the Manhattan area. It didn't add up.

Then again, that was probably how Storm felt when he'd first met her. Something about her radiated innocence. Even with the bias of knowing that Cherry had _died_ at her very hand. Her aura was just… different. Odd. Off. But Adrian couldn't put his finger on it. Neither could Storm.

Right now, he was hiding in one of the school classrooms. School had let out thirty minutes ago. The hallways were empty. And most of the classrooms were too. Like the one he was currently standing in. With a strike of luck, it happened to be right in front of Emerald's locker.

Adrian peered out the small window at the small girl, with a waterfall of sleek black hair. It hung and swirled around her face, shadowing her sunken eyes that had dark purple bruises beneath them.

She was loading and unloading books and binders. Taking her time. Doing things exactly; slowly.

She had just finished up and closed her locker shut when someone appeared into the window's view. Emerald didn't seem to notice until she turned and almost rammed into him. Her eyes widened and her books dropped out of her hands.

It was then that Adrian could see how someone like her, so innocent and so delicate could kill any vampire.

Her aura changed, it was like a ripple in the time-space continuum. Her new aura blasted Adrian, radiating coldness, hatred, anger. Her eyes flashed and hardened, her jaw set. She threw a right hook at the vampire before her, making easy contact, and then brought the same hand back around slam into his temple.

That vampire went down just as another came behind her, trying to wrap his arm around her neck, but she was quick to respond, by flipping him over onto the vampire she'd just knocked out.

Yet another vampire appeared, hand pulled back ready to hit her, but she faced him and caught his fist easily, fluidly turning and flipping him into the lockers so hard there was a dent to show.

By now the two others had gathered their bearings and were getting back up, ready to tag-team her.

Adrian watched in horror and amazement at the same time, as she took on the three of them.

Then another one.

And one more.

She didn't seem tired at all, as she kicked, punched, twisted arms, crushed bones. But two others appeared and suddenly she was fighting for her life. Her technique was no longer strategized, but flailing, almost frantic. Adrian could hear her heart pounding in her chest, her ragged breathing hissing through her teeth.

One of them managed to get a hit in and that was the end of that. All Adrian could do was watch, frozen to the spot as they tossed her around, their fists making contact with her face and stomach; their feet making contact with her back, legs, arms.

Adrian's body was tense, but he still couldn't move. Part of him wanted to go out there, help her. She was defenseless. The other part kept him glued to the spot, not wanting to help her. She deserved his. She'd killed his wife. Cherry. She'd killed Cherry. She'd broken his heart and burned a memory into both Adrian's and Storm's mind, to leave a scar, always reminding them of what they'd lost years ago.

Emerald, not once, let out a scream or a cry, to Adrian's surprise. Even when they'd brought out a blade. (No stabbing, but definitely some cutting.) Even when they'd blast her with wave after wave of Power. (Fortunately the guys didn't know how to used their Powers to cause the most harm, and had to reload, giving Emerald a chance to somewhat recuperate.)

Finally, after what seemed like hours, but was really only mere minutes, the seven teens backed off, circling her. Admiring the work they'd done.

One of them, the leader, Adrian assumed, knelt down in front of her and grabbed some her hair, pulled her face up so she could look at him. He had a wide smirk that might've split his face in half if it'd been any bigger.

"You amuse me," the leader commented.

She spat at him. He tightened his grip on her hair and her whole body went rigid.

"That was very rude." he commented reaching up with his free hand to wipe her spit of his cheek. "Now, what do you say about our offer, huh? I've given you two whole weeks to think about this and heal."

"You'll have to kill me before you get any sort of agreement to _things_ like you." she growled. A millisecond past before Emerald's face twisted, her eyes squeezing shut, her jaw clamped tightly together. Adrian couldn't see anything that the leader was doing, but saw something glint in the school's fluorescent lights. His eyes strayed over and saw that another one of the goons was running his blade down her leg, easily slicing through her jeans.

A line of crimson red ran from her knee all the way down to her ankle. The teen sheathed his dagger, completing the small circle around her.

Emerald's body went slack and she let out a breath she'd been holding in.

"You're a stubborn one," The leader spoke. "But we have ways of breaking down that barrier. Come time and you'll agree to our conditions. They always do." He let go of her hair and straightened. With a nod, the seven of them headed out.

Adrian waited.

Emerald struggled to push herself to her knees, crawl over to the lockers and lean back, her chest heaving. Her body shook, and her eyes were half-open with exhaustion and pain. Her aura changed once more, back to the pure, innocent one, only it seemed to be fading now, not as strong. He could feel her give in to her demons.

Without thinking about what he was doing, Adrian stepped out of the room he'd been hiding in. Emerald looked up. Her face remained blank; her eyes remained blank; her face devoid of any emotion. Dead.

Her breathing was shallow and irregular.

She looked up at him without batting an eye, as Adrian stood over her, trying to decide what he should do.

As he was contemplating this, her arm moved down to her pocket. She pulled back revealing a switchblade. Her movement so smooth, it almost looked like a magic trick.

Emerald flipped it open, turned the knife in her hand and held it up for Adrian to take.

"Just make it quick." she mumbled.

Adrian took the blade from her. Her hand dropped and her eyes closed. Adrian held her knife in his hand for a moment, thinking about the decision Emerald had just given him.

* * *

><p>Emerald winced as Adrian tended to the cut on her arm. Right now he was wiping it down with a cotton ball drowned in rubbing alcohol.<p>

"I'm sorry," Adrian apologized. "I should've stepped in."

"If you had, you would probably be in the same position as me right now." she told him in a monotone, shrugging and wincing again.

Adrian stopped what he was doing and pulled back to look at her. "Did you just insult my fighting skills?"

Emerald thought about what she'd just said and a faint blush stained her cheeks and she looked down at the hands in her lap.

"I guess I did." she murmured.

Adrian set the cotton ball down picked up one of the large band-aids from the first-aid kit and put it over the wound.

Just as he was finishing up something started ringing. Adrian pulled out his cell and looked at the ID number.

"I have to take this. If you'll excuse me," He stood, flipping open his phone. His voice faded into the background as he exited the room.

Emerald sighed and looked down at the laceration on her leg. It didn't look bad… well, at least it wasn't deep, so she wouldn't need stitches (thank God; she hated hospitals), but it was still a knife wound.

Emerald pulled the first-aid kit over to her and searched for a pair of scissors. When she found them, she swiftly chopped off her jeans at the knee, before grabbing another cotton ball and soaking it in rubbing alcohol.

She stuck her left leg out and turned it to get a good look at the cut. It was still slightly oozing blood, but most of it was dried and coated around the wound. With another sigh, she started cleaning it up. Emerald had just finished wrapping her leg in gauze when the front door of their mansion opened.

Emerald straightened up and was surprised to see Storm, with a girl latched onto his arm. Her heart skipped a beat and she tried to ignore the pang that went through her when she saw that he had a girl with him. And she was pretty too. Tall, with long legs; hair was wavy, long, glossy dark chocolate brown; her eyes were a wide sky blue color.

When Storm finally spotted Emerald his eyes flared up.

"What are you doing here?" he asked stiffly.

"Who's she?" the girl asked already sounded offended.

Emerald smiled sweetly at them, and rested her elbow on the armrest, and in turn, resting her head in her hand.

"I'm his soulmate." She answered the girl's question.

Emerald could tell that Storm was fighting to control his anger.

"No," he spat, glaring at her. She stared evenly back with a smile on her face. "She's my _ex_."

The brown-haired girl relaxed.

"What happened to your face?" she asked, her eyes squinting as she stared rudely at Emerald.

"Good day at work." Emerald answered cheekily. The brown-haired girl looked at her like she was someone who belonged in the loony bin, an uncomfortable silence starting to form.

Storm turned toward his girlfriend. "Why don't you head upstairs, to my room. First door on your left. I'll be up in a moment, okay?" he asked his voice light.

The girl looked uneasily at Emerald but finally nodded.

"Okay, sure," she said, heading toward the stairs. Storm waited until she had disappeared into his room before spinning on his heel and walking toward Emerald. He stood with his arms crossed, his jaw tight.

"Good to see you, too." Emerald commented sarcastically.

"_What_ are you doing here?" Storm hissed.

"Quite the catch you've got there." Emerald told him nodding toward the stairs, ignoring his question completely again.

"I told you, school is a good place to feed." Storm retorted, knowing this would peeve Emerald.

And it did.

Emerald's hands balled into fists. "Do you usually take them home so quickly?" she asked, tossing the ball back into his court.

"Oh, please, you're just jealous that it isn't you."

Emerald stood, getting into his face. "Who would _ever_ want to be your feeding vessel?" she spat.

Storm smirked. "If I recall correctly, you already were."

Emerald's face paled and she swallowed hard. He'd just put her fire out. She couldn't think of a witty comeback because, to be fair, it was true. She had let him feed off her.

Knowing he'd won this battle, Storm asked again, "So, what are you doing here, Emerald?" He seemed to have relaxed, like insulting her calmed him down.

"Your father." she answered.

Storm's eyebrows shot up. "Oh, _really_?"

"Yes, _really_," Emerald mimicked. "I gave him the chance to kill me, but he didn't. And you're just going to have to except that Adrian will always like me so much more than those girls from school."

"Oh, so you're on first names now, huh?"

Emerald shrugged, gratified that she'd found another topic that would piss Storm off. It was bad of her, but all was fair in love and war, right? And right now, it was both.

"Where is my father anyway?" Storm asked, back to his tense self.

"He went to take a phone call." she told simply.

"And you're just going to expect me to just believe that?"

"What are you saying? It's the truth!"

"Right, right, I'm sure it is."

Emerald paused for a moment, looking at Storm, trying to find a clue to what he could possibly be talking about.

"I didn't do anything to him!" she exclaimed, realizing what he was implying.

"Yeah, like I'm going to believe that. You're a _hunter_." he spat.

"I didn't kill him, if that's what you're implying." Emerald told him her voice quiet and strained; dangerous.

"How should I know if you're telling the truth or not? You could've! You killed my mom after all!"

Emerald let out a frustrated growl. "We've been over this before! You know I've always felt guilty about that! I was young! I needed some stability in my life! I had just gone through a _year_ of physical and mental torture." Tears had started to form in Emerald's eyes, but she refused to let Storm see her cry. For all he knew, she still wasn't able to make tears.

"What did you do to him?" Storm demanded.

"Nothing! I didn't do anything!" Emerald shouted back.

"Whoa, whoa, guys, calm down." Adrian said, coming in and putting himself between the two before they started fighting with fists and possibly weapons. "What is going on?" he asked, looking back and forth between them, as they continued to glare at each other.

"I had to make sure that she hadn't done anything." Storm finally answered.

"Done anything? What—" Adrian's face cleared. "I'm fine, Storm. I was taking a phone call."

Storm looked at his father, almost the same height as he was. "I had to make sure. I can't trust her." He turned his burning gaze back to Emerald.

"Things change—" Emerald tried.

Storm cut her off sharply. "But nothing's going to change the fact that you _murdered_ my mother! You're not a hunter! You're not even human! You're a monster! You're a cold-blooded, cruel, killing monster!"

**My apologies for the long wait. School! I'll **_**try**_** to update next weekend, but I'm not making guarantees…. Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	17. Seventeen

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Mercy

Emerald jerked back at Storm's comment. Her eyes wide; her mouth hung slightly open as she stared at Storm. He glowered coldly back, with not a shred of sympathy. No sign of ever taking his words back. Hearing those words hurt more than Emerald wanted it too. They tore at her heart, and suddenly she started questioning all the things she'd done for the past three years.

Adrian looked at his son sternly, but Storm turned away and thundered up the stairs, leaving a shocked Emerald and disappointed Adrian standing in the living room.

"I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. He's usually not this…" Adrian trailed off not able to think of a fitting word for what just happened.

"No," Emerald said weakly, stumbling back onto the couch. "No, he's right." she whispered. "I am. I am a monster. All I do is kill."

"Now, Emerald—" Adrian started.

"Thanks," she interrupted quickly, looking up at him. "Thanks for the help. But I should really get back to my place. I think I've overstayed my welcome." She stood and started to head to the door, but Adrian quickly followed and intercepted her.

"I at least owe you a drive home. Besides, it's getting dark and I don't think you want to walk all the way back to the Marriott." he explained quickly as Emerald opened her mouth to object.

"No, really, I'll just call a cab, or something." Emerald told him.

"I insist, it's really no trouble at all." Adrian persisted.

They looked at each other for a moment before Emerald turned away blinking.

"Uh, sure," she finally agreed. "That's very kind of you." she mumbled.

Adrian quickly grabbed his keys and opened the door for her.

The drive was quick and silent. Well, on the inside of the car. Outside was your usual bustle of the Big Apple. Adrian parked his car and pulled the keys out.

"Let me walk you up." he said.

"Um… sure, that'd be great." Emerald said quietly, stepping out.

The walk was silent as well, but Emerald was actually enjoying herself. It was nice to know that someone cared about her well-being. Just cared about her in general. Even after all the things she'd done to him.

Half-way to her suite, they crashed into Miss Foster.

"Oh, Emerald, dearie, I was looking for you." she exclaimed. "I need to talk to you about your pets."

"Oh, did something happen? Is everyone all right?" Emerald questioned.

Miss Foster smiled. "No, everyone's doing quite well." she assured her. "I have a family reunion coming up and I can't take care of them anymore. I just wanted to talk to you about what was going to happen next."

"Oh, that's fine. I'm actually able to take care of them myself again. I really appreciate you keeping them while I… sorted some stuff out. You don't know how much it means to me. I know that they can be a handful. If there's any way I can repay you—"

"Oh, you don't have to do that!" Miss Foster exclaimed. "You're fine, sweetie."

"Are… are you sure. Because I can do anything—"

"No, no, you're fine."

"Oh, okay, well… are they ready to move out now? Because we can go switch them over to my suite if you have time." Emerald suggested.

"That sounds wonderful." Miss Foster agreed.

Just before heading off, Emerald remembered she had company. "Oh, and, Miss Foster, this is Adrian Kallahan. He's Storm's father." She introduced.

Adrian held his hand out for Miss Foster to shake.

"Nice to meet you." he said politely.

"Like wise. And I must say, you have raised a fine young man." she commented patting his hand. Then she turned and started to her suite with Emerald and Adrian following.

"Oh, you don't have to come." Emerald said. "Thank you for driving me home and… everything. Um, but, you should probably get back to your house. Check on… things." she muttered, quickly following Miss Foster down the hall, for she had stopped to talk to him.

Adrian followed. "No, I don't mind helping. It'll go fast, anyway." he insisted yet again.

"Are you sure? It's mundane, vermin work. I didn't think your kind did that."

Before Adrian could reply to Emerald's comment Miss Foster stopped and opened her door.

Emerald's two cats were waiting at the door, like they knew that today she was going to pick them up. One was a female Russian Blue, and the other was a blazing orange tabby-tom.

Emerald knelt down and smiled as they plodded forward, nuzzling against her legs and purring so loud you'd be able to hear them down the hall.

"Oh, I missed you guys too." Emerald crooned, picking up the Russian Blue and standing while the tabby-tom simultaneously leaped nimbly onto her shoulders. Emerald turned toward Adrian. "This is Artemis"—she gestured to the Russian Blue with a nod—"and this is Apollo." She gestured to the tabby on her shoulders.

"Fitting names," Adrian remarked reaching out to pet Artemis who promptly opened her mouth, like she was going to yawn, instead she bit down on Adrian's hand. Adrian's face paled and his jaw tightened, but he didn't make a sound.

"Artemis!" Emerald exclaimed quickly pulling her away from Adrian and turning Artemis so that her head was farther away from Adrian. "I'm sorry," Emerald looked embarrassed. "I should've warned you: Artemis doesn't like the boys so much."

Adrian was rubbing his hand. "It's fine. Pets in general don't usually like me anyway. I'm used to it." His voice was tight and his face still a little ashen, but he seemed fine.

"Um, Miss Foster, I'll be right back, I'm going to go put these two back into my suite, okay?" Emerald asked turning toward the kindly old woman.

"All right, dearie. I'll go get Artemis and Apollo's things then." she answered heading inside as Emerald and Adrian went back to her suite where Emerald quickly put them inside before heading back to Miss Foster's suite.

After that, everything went pretty quickly. With the help of Adrian things went faster than it would've originally taken.

Emerald plopped down on one of the chairs in the living room, letting out a hefty sigh. She'd just fed Artemis and Apollo and now was feeling totally worn with everything that had happened that day. The vampires. Storm. Now this. She'd have to get used to taking care of all three of her pets again now.

"You said you had three pets, right?" Adrian asked, his dirty blond, almost light brown, eyebrows knitting together.

"Hm? Oh, yeah." Emerald stood. "I'll show you. I keep her in my room." Adrian followed a little hesitantly wondering just what she was going to show him. What this third pet could possibly be.

In the corner, something that Adrian hadn't noticed before, was an empty tank with a heating lamp. It was empty of any life as far as Adrian could see. Emerald leaned over and gently tapped the glass. There was movement but Emerald moved, blocking Adrian's view. She reached into the tank and brought her hand out, but something was in it.

Emerald turned. "This is Tigress." she introduced carefully stroking the back of the large, hairy tarantula sitting in the palm of her hand.

"A spider?" Adrian asked uncertainly.

Emerald snickered. "You're not scared are you?" she asked a mocking edge to her voice.

"No, of course not." he objected.

Emerald's breath caught and for a moment she could see the personality traits of Storm in his father. They didn't look anything alike (because he'd inherited all of his mother's traits) but their personalities really showed, even the body movements, the voice.

Both were stubborn. Gentlemanly—although that was also kind a learned. Both set their jaws when they denied something, or acted like something didn't bother them. Both looked away broodingly.

It was such a close similarity it hurt.

But she couldn't do this now. If she thought about this, she'd think about Storm. And if she thought about Storm she'd think about what he'd said to her today. And if she thought about what he'd said to her today no one would be able to pull her from the black void that she'd fall into.

Right now, even, she was fighting, struggling to stay above water. It was a day-to-day battle that never ended. And hearing Storm make those accusations—which were wholly true—only weighed her down with a thousand extra pounds.

Emerald shook herself and tuned back into the present, her eyes becoming un-glazed.

"Um, there's really nothing to be afraid of." she told him, taking a step closer, forcing her voice to be light.

"No, really, that's okay." Adrian objected, looking nervously at the tarantula in her hands.

Emerald smiled and turned to put Tigress back in her tank, deciding she wouldn't scare Adrian any more than necessary. After Emerald fed Tigress she went back out to the living room where Adrian was waiting patiently for her.

"I should probably get going now." he announced.

Emerald nodded. "Thanks for everything. You don't know how much it means to me."

"Sure, it really wasn't… anything. I just thought— You just looked like you needed some help."

Emerald made a face. "Ugh, a damsel in distress." she groaned.

"There's nothing to be ashamed of." Adrian chuckled. "Everyone needs someone else sometime or another." He headed for the door. Half-way out he turned and faced her again. "And about what Storm said—"

Emerald shook her head and held her hand up, cutting him off. "It's fine." she choked. "I'm totally over it." Total lie.

"All right, well, bye then, Emerald."

Without thinking Emerald answered: "Bye, Dad."

Adrian froze and Emerald realized what she'd just said.

"Did you just—" Adrian started, spinning around.

Emerald shook her head, pressing her lips together tightly.

"Are you sure, because I thought I heard—"

"You're just hearing things, is all." Emerald told him. "Um, I have to go now. Bye, Mister Kallahan."

"Emerald, wait, are you okay?" Adrian asked quickly before she could slam the door in his face.

"Yeah, fine, but I really do have to go. I… I still have homework and projects that are waiting to finished." She mumbled, and before he could say or do anything more, she closed the door. Emerald turned and leaned against it for a moment before sliding down to the floor, pulling her knees to her chest.

When Adrian's footsteps faded down the hall, Emerald bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes. Hatred followed after that, like a 50 foot wave, crashing down on her. She reached up and scrubbed at her eyes furiously. Why did she have to cry? It wasn't fair! She was stronger than this!

Finally she gave up, the self-loathing only bringing more unwanted tears.

"I just forgot," she spoke, answering Adrian's unvoiced question, "what it was like to have a dad."

* * *

><p>Emerald chewed on her lip, her heart pounding, as she slowly walked up to her friends' new table. Time to make amends and do some damage control.<p>

"Um, hey guys, can I talk to you?" she asked, catching their attention. Carter looked up at her hopefully, while Mackenzie and Danny appraised her.

Then they all exchanged a glance and then Mackenzie finally nodded. Carter pulled a chair up, eagerly for Emerald, who slowly sat down.

"I'm really sorry," she apologized. "For everything. The way I acted. The way I pushed you guys away. I was… I was having a really rough time." Emerald's voice became tight. She swallowed the bile and turned toward Mackenzie and Danny. "Happy Belated birthday, guys. I hope these will make up for it." Emerald pulled out two tickets for a Coldplay concert.

Mackenzie and Danny's birthdays were only three days apart, so they started a tradition to celebrate together between both their birthdays.

"And I heard that you guys… are a thing?" Emerald asked slowly as Mackenzie and Danny examined the tickets. "When did that start?"

They looked up at the same time and both said, "The party." They looked at each other. "Jinx!" they said in sync again. When it became what felt like a private moment, Emerald turned toward Carter.

"Hey," she said softly.

"Hey." Carter mimicked.

"I heard you and Anthony broke up." Emerald shuddered thinking about what had happened with Anthony a while back. Since then he hadn't bothered her. He had disappeared for a couple days afterward but came back. Has never interacted with Emerald since.

Carter sighed. "Yeah," she sniffled.

"I'm sorry, that's not a good way to start an apology." Emerald quickly revised.

"No, no," Carter's copper curls swung. "It's okay. It was a doomed relationship in the first place, anyway."

"No! Don't say that!" Emerald objected. "There'll be more relationships to come! Better ones. Anthony is and always will be a big, fat jerk." she comforted her friend. "You just have to beat him up and move on."

Carter smiled through her watery eyes. "Thanks."

Emerald pulled Carter into a tight hug and Carter sighed, looking at Mackenzie and Danny. Should she tell them how cruel they had acted? How much they had hated her? Maybe she shouldn't; she didn't want to ruin the moment. Emerald was finally back. They were a gang again. And for now, Carter decided, that would have to do.

* * *

><p>Emerald lifted her hands up, to look at them. She'd done so much. Killed so many. Created all kinds of carnage with these very hands. Yet they remained clean.<p>

Or so she thought.

They were coated in a layer of sticky, thick, dark liquid. And no matter how hard she tried, no matter how much she washed, or scrubbed, or cleaned it never went away. The blood stayed. A never ending reminder of all the things she'd done the past three years. All the hurt she'd caused to the Kallahan family. All the hurt she'd probably caused other families unknowingly.

With a gasp Emerald flew up in bed, jolted from another nightmare. Nightmares she'd been having ever since that fateful day, meeting Storm at his house. They varied, but a lot of them had to do with the blood on her hands.

She reached over to turn on the light and lifted her hands, to examine them. Pale, like her skin, no sign or trace of any blood. Long, petite, piano fingers; capable of cutting off airways and snapping spinal cords.

Looks could be deceiving.

* * *

><p>There were whispers all around school. It was becoming irritating already, and Emerald had just entered the building. It was mostly the freshmen and sophomore girls, in big hordes, talking about some new kid.<p>

"I hear he's a troublemaker."

"Really? I heard that he's had dozens upon dozens of girlfriends."

"He's _so_ hot, though. No wonder."

"Do you think I'd have a shot with him?"

It was there wherever Emerald went. She couldn't even get to her locker because of another group of girls gossiping about this mysterious new kid.

Emerald cleared her throat. "Move it freshmen." she ordered.

They all stopped giggling and gossiping to glare at her.

"We're sophomores." one of them told her with contempt looking at Emerald like she was a joke. "What grade are _you_ in?"

"I'm a junior." Emerald told them, crossing her arms. The girls started pouting. "Now, excuse you, you're standing in front of my locker."

With grumbles and muttered insults that Emerald didn't catch, the girls sulked off to go gossip about the new kid in front of some other poor kid's locker.

Lunch came slowly; time moving like molasses. Emerald was grateful for a break from the frivolous, banter about the new kid. It was all about the new kid! New kid this! New kid that! Was it ever going to end?

"Well, hello Miss Grumpy-Pants." Carter greeted as Emerald sat down. She must've had a scowl on her face.

"I'm just tired of all this stuff going on!" Emerald exclaimed exasperated and grateful that she could blow off steam and rant.

"Oh you mean that weird new kid, that no one mentions the name of?" Danny asked coming to sit down, Mackenzie following closely behind.

Emerald nodded. "Yeah, exactly. I mean, I don't see why this person's such a big deal? They're just some new kid. Schools get new kids all the time? What's so different about _this_ kid?"

"Uh, Emerald?" Mackenzie asked, stopping her. She was looking at the entrance of the cafeteria.

But Emerald was on a tangent, nothing could get her to stop… except for maybe the person who happened to walk into the cafeteria just a moment before. The thing Mackenzie had been trying to get Emerald's attention about.

Emerald shot up, her back going ramrod straight, as emerald green locked on to electric blue.

**I know, this was more of a filler chapter... I'll post when I can (which will hopefully be soon).**** Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	18. Eighteen

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Nightshade

"Storm," his father asked, knocking on his door.

Storm cracked the door open and stuck his head out, but Adrian didn't fail to miss the girl, currently sleeping on his bed. His eyes strayed back to his son.

Storm pinched the bridge of his nose. "Don't patronize me." he muttered, stepping out and closing the door quietly. "I was upset and I… got carried away. She'll be fine."

"We need to have a serious talk." Adrian said in a low stern voice. "Downstairs. Now." Without giving him time to answer or say anything else, Adrian descended the stairs. Storm sighed but followed.

Adrian was waiting patiently in the living room.

Storm came to sit down facing his father.

"What has gotten into you?" Adrian asked. "Because this is not the son Cherry and I raised."

"I'm just… going through some things. I'm fine." Storm sighed.

Adrian pursed his lips. "What you said today—"

"Don't remind me." Storm groaned dropping his head. "I'm not proud of what I said." His head lifted slightly, just enough for Adrian to see how torn Storm's eyes were; just how much this was affecting Storm. "Did you see the look in her eyes?" Storm asked in a whisper. "It was… _horrible_. And, I caused that. It was like I had run a dagger straight through her heart." Storm grimaced.

Adrian leaned forward, knowing exactly what his son felt like, for he had been in this position as well in his younger years. "You really love her don't you, son?"

"Well… were soulmates." Storm muttered.

Adrian chuckled, got up and went to sit down next to Storm. "From the looks of things I could really tell. I had my doubts, but, you know the way that you looked at each other today, ready to rip each other's throats out."

"I could really do without the sarcasm, Dad." Storm looked over at his father who smiled.

"What I'm trying to say is it just didn't seem to be really working in the beginning." he told Storm seriously. "But I can see you truly do care about her."

"You're not going to get all sappy on me, are you?" Storm groaned, about so stand up.

"When I first laid eyes on your mother, I knew," Adrian started, keeping Storm glued to his seat. "I knew she was the one for me. She was smart, funny, sweet, caring. So many other traits that'd take me eternity to list. She was everything to me. Things were rough from the start, kind of like yours. Maybe not as extreme, but I just couldn't comprehend how she could stand humans. Stand to be around them.

"That was the time when I'd always been out, hunting like you young ones do. After I met her, everything in my life seemed to change. For the better, of course. There wasn't anything I wouldn't do for her." Adrian's eyes became misty and his voice wistful. Clearing his throat he rubbed his eyes. "What I'm trying to say is that, there isn't anything I wouldn't do in this whole entire world to spend another sixty minutes with your mother.

"There are still so many things I want to say, so many words that were unspoken. And I just don't want it to be that way for you. I know…" Adrian patted Storm shoulder. "I know that you've probably heard this many, many times before, but, life really is short. Even for a vampire. You want to make every moment that you can count. You shouldn't waste it on hatred and loathing.

"And she's your soulmate. Soulmates are supposed to be together, not apart."

Storm almost laughed at how similar his father sounded to Tasha when she'd broken up with him.

He had _a lot_ to contemplate now.

* * *

><p>What was he doing here? Was he really this new kid everyone had been talking about all day? He already had a school closer to him! Why was he <em>here<em>? It didn't make any sense! Was it his personal goal to make Emerald's life as miserable as possible now? Did he enjoy torturing her?

Emerald's inside babble ceased as soon as Storm started walking toward them. The girls' eyes following his every step. When he passed they'd smile and giggle, turning to their friends and whispering about how much hotter he was up close, or how he didn't look as bad as he sounded, or—well you get the point.

Emerald's gaze never left his as he got closer. Her heart was beating erratically, her mouth dry as a bone. He stopped in front of their table with a polite smile for everyone. Emerald couldn't do much but gawk at him, though. She was still trying to get over the shock of all this and figure out why he was here.

"Um, do you mind if I sit down?" he asked, breaking the silence.

Emerald stood. "I don't know about my friends here, but _I_ do, in fact, mind." she told him coldly.

"I would appreciate it, if you didn't talk like that. I'm simply here to make amends." Storm replied coolly.

"Come on, Emerald," Mackenzie said. "I think you're being a little hard on him. We're all friends here."

"Really?" Emerald asked, not looking away from Storm. "Because I see three friends and one about-to-be-_very_-sorry boy."

"Listen, I'm sorry about what happened the other day, okay?" Storm said almost exasperated. "I was angry."

"That's all you've ever been since this whole thing happened!" Emerald shot back. "You're always angry! Can't you just give a rest already?"

Storm's eyebrows knitted together, the edge's of his lips turning down. "Well you can't blame me, you k—"

"Storm!" Emerald swiftly cut him off. Storm's face cleared and he realized that he was standing in the middle of a high school cafeteria again. "Why don't we go talk somewhere private." Emerald suggested, picking up her backpack and pushing in her chair. She walked around the table and turned to face her three friends. "I'll see you guys later?"

"But Emerald—" Carter objected.

"I'm just going to talk. I'll see you guys after school." Emerald assured them, turning back around, only to run smack into someone. She pulled back. "Oh, I'm so sorry." Then she saw who it was. "Actually, I'm so _not_."

Anthony's glittering zircon eyes bore into hers. "Watch it Song," he snarled.

"You watch it Winters." Emerald retorted. She crossed her arms defiantly. "I'm not scared of you." Emerald told him. Anthony smiled and stepped closer to her.

"You should be." he murmured in her ear.

"Dude, come on," one of his soccer buddies urged.

Anthony pulled back with that same smirk on his face before turning back to continue walking with his friend. Emerald followed him until Storm cleared his throat. She looked over at him and then briskly headed out of the cafeteria. She chose an empty, dark classroom and slipped inside.

She walked in arms crossed, turned, leaning against the teacher's desk, and faced Storm.

"What do you want?" she asked harshly.

"I came here to apologize for what I've done these past few days." Storm answered quietly.

"What, and you thought that coming in the middle of the school day and saying 'sorry' was going to do wonders and get me to forgive you?" she asked. "This isn't some fairy tale with instant forgiveness and happily ever afters!"

"I wasn't expecting you to forgive me just like that—" he started quietly.

"I don't get happily ever afters, because I'm some monster, remember?"

"I should've have said that. I wasn't thinking." His voice stayed quiet and leveled.

"But you and I both know it's only true. That's what I've done for years now. I don't know anything different anymore. I'm not the same Emerald I was three years ago. I've developed a whole new persona! I'm just a killer." she finished throwing her hands down, looking at them.

Tears welled up in her eyes and let out a growl of frustration, furiously wiping them away.

"This is all your fault!" she yelled looking up at him.

Storm stepped back. "What? _My_ fault? What did I do?"

Emerald blinked and big fat tears rolled down her cheeks. She pointed at them. "This! This is your fault!" She walked forward, jabbing her finger at Storm, who was holding up his hands in surrender.

"You're tears? You think that _I_ made you cry?" he asked disbelievingly.

Emerald wiped her tears away and nodded. "Yeah. In more ways than one." she muttered grudgingly as more tears filled her eyes. "I wasn't like this!" she exclaimed turning away and walking toward the teacher's desk again. "I never cried. Never shed a tear. I had learned to turn my tear ducts off." She spun and glowered at Storm. "Then I met you and suddenly I'm blubbering like a new-born baby! It's _so_ frustrating!" She sniffled and wiped more of her tears just as they escaped the edge of her eyes.

"Please, just hear me out." Storm said gently, his eyes pleading with hers.

"Sixty seconds." she decided.

Storm's eyes flickered to the clock. "Sixty seconds? Only sixty seconds? Couldn't it be—"

"Fifty-nine; fifty-eight; fifty-seven—"

"Okay, okay," Storm agreed. "Like I said before I came to make amends. I came to apologize; I'll even grovel on my hands and knees. I'll do whatever it takes to earn your forgiveness back, because—"

"Time's up." Emerald interrupted.

Storm hissed softly before going up to Emerald and putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Emerald, please, I'm dying here. Give me something to work with." Storm begged, his eyes penetrating her. The contact making the air around them buzz and spark. She wasn't used to being this close to Storm. It'd been several weeks since they'd been _this_ close.

So close his scent wafted toward him. So close that when he exhaled her hair stirred. So close it made her pulse pound; her stomach knot; her brain just halt, rational thoughts were out the window.

"Why are you here?" she finally whispered, her breath blowing into Storm's face. He blinked and mentally shook himself to clear his head.

"I came to apologize and help you. Those vampires aren't getting any nicer and it's only a matter of time before something happens." Storm's voice was just barely a pained whisper.

Emerald pushed his hands off her shoulders, ignoring how her heart skipped a beat when her hands came in contact with his.

"I don't need your help." Emerald claimed adamantly.

"Yes, because the bruises on your arms and face tell you've got it all handled." Storm said, pursing his lips.

Emerald rolled her eyes, and quickly pulled her sleeve up, covering the bruises on her arms. Unfortunately she couldn't do anything to cover the ones on her face, especially her shiner. That one probably gave her more trouble than any of the others.

Storm took another step toward her, reaching up to gently run the tip of his fingers down the side of her face. Where he touched tingled warmly.

"I'm just worried about you. You can't handle this all by yourself. You _need_ help, Emerald." Storm whispered tucking some stray hair behind her ear. She shivered and closed her eyes for a moment composing herself.

She turned her head and eyed Storm with dark, twinkling amber eyes.

"D-d-don't… don't start that… thing." she stuttered.

Storm smiled, chuckling. "What thing?" he asked.

"That whole, 'Oh, I think I'm so cool,' lean over the girl, barricading her in, thing. You know… the thing!" she tried to explain.

Smirking, Storm did the exact opposite of what Emerald had wanted him to do: he leaned forward resting his hands on the desk behind her. She veered back, but there was only so far she could go, with the desk behind her and all.

Their faces were inches apart.

"Storm," Emerald breathed. "We can't just…" she trailed off weakly. "We can't just… pretend like everything's all good and dandy." she objected. "A lot of bad things were exchanged between us. You can't expect me to drop it all and act like nothing happened."

"I know. I'm not expecting you to. But…" He leaned in close, chuckling when Emerald's heart spasmed before going double time. "I can hardly help myself." he whispered in her ear. He pulled back still smiling, his eyes sparkling. Emerald was paralyzed. She couldn't move, blink, breath, speak, think.

"Just say no." Storm told her, leaning in farther.

Emerald wanted to, but another part—a much stronger, more overwhelming part—was keeping her silent. She tried to force her lips to move, to say those two simple letters, they wouldn't oblige.

But just at that moment, the teacher walked in, flicking the lights on. Emerald's brain thawed and she pushed Storm away from her, her cheeks burning. The teacher was eyeing them suspiciously.

"We were just… talking." Emerald mumbled. The teacher nodded. "Uh, yeah…" The bell rang. "Oh, uh, have to get to class then." She shuffled over to the door. "We'll talk later." she told Storm before dashing out.

At the end of the day Storm met Emerald at her locker.

"I think that we should start over." Emerald said, closing her locker and turning to look at Storm. Now that she had three periods to compose herself, and get her thoughts straight she was sure at what she was going to do. "Just as friends first. Then, we'll see where that takes us." Storm looked crestfallen, so Emerald continued on quickly before his eyes alone could convince her otherwise. "It's not that I don't want to be with you, because I do, God, you don't believe how much I do, but—" She broke off and took a breath. "But I just need to work some things out.

"A lot has happened and I told you before, I can't just let that drop. Let's just start as good friends and work our way up, okay?" She was practically pleading now, desperate even.

"All right," Storm agreed slowly. Emerald relaxed and they started toward the exit. "But we still have to take care of those vampires that are attacking you." he told her quietly.

"I know," Emerald sighed, rubbing her forehead. "I know; I'm just not really sure what. They always show up at the most inconvenient times and I can't seem to kill any of them! And I don't know where they're going off to, or who they're working for, if anyone."

"What about that offer? What's that about?" Storm asked.

Emerald stiffened and her throat clogged up. "They keep telling me, offering me, 'We'll turn you into a vampire, make it painless, before _he_ gets to you first.' I don't know what it means, and I don't know who this 'he' is."

"This is going to be harder than I assumed." Storm muttered.

"Well, actually I've had this reoccurring plan pop into my head lately, and it might work…" Emerald trailed off and peeked sideways at Storm uncertainly.

"But…" Storm prompted.

"But it's really risky and I don't think you'd approve." she finished. "I mean, I'm even really, really unsure of it."

"Well, why don't you tell me and we'll talk about the options." Storm suggested.

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you," Emerald said before diving into what she'd been thinking.

* * *

><p>"Now can anyone tell me—" the teacher broke off seeing Emerald's raised hand. "Yes?" he asked.<p>

"May I be excused? I'm feeling a bit lightheaded." she requested.

"Sure, would you like help down to the nurse's office?"

Emerald shook her head. "No, I think I can make it." she told him, standing up and slinging her backpack over her shoulder. She walked out slowly careful not the stumble or crash into anything. Her eyelids dropped and the hallways spun; the lockers around her becoming blurry and a big, green mess.

Emerald leaned heavily against the wall for support, her knees almost buckling. Deep inside her, the Vigilante was panicking. What was happening to her? Why did she feel so tired? So worn? Weak?

A shadow loomed over her, and she blinked rapidly trying to distinguish the face.

"Hello, Emerald," the man greeted. And just like that she knew it was. Todd, the leader of that vicious group of vampires that kept attacking her.

"You," Her word slurred. "You did this." Emerald's knees totally buckled, but Todd caught one of her arms. "What…" she tried breathlessly as Todd slung her into his arms, bridal style. "What did you _do_?"

"You'll be fine. Our boss has grown impatient with out little altercations." he explained lightly.

"So, what?" Emerald snorted. "You're kidnapping me now?"

"Pretty much."

Emerald sighed, her eyes fully closing. "This… really wasn't… necessary." she said, her voice just barely a whisper as she slipped in and out of unconsciousness.

"Oh?" Todd questioned surprised.

"I was… actually going to… agree to your offer… when I met with you… again."

"Interesting."

"Well, I thought… this was getting… old. Maybe I… should just… give in."

Todd chuckled blackly. "Well, you don't quite have a choice now."

After that everything was a blur. Emerald remembers, just vaguely, being put into a van. A few moments of driving and she couldn't fight whatever drug they'd used on her. The sound and sensations died around her and the waves lapped up over her and pulled her out to sea.

* * *

><p>Everything was black when Emerald opened her eyes again. Her head was in a haze still. She went to take a deep breath but realized a large piece of duct tape was covering her mouth. That woke her up quick. The Vigilante side kicked in and she started to gather whatever information she could.<p>

Another thing she registered was that the room she was in wasn't black; her eyes had been tightly blindfolded, no light leaking through. When Emerald went to take it off a pain shot up her arm. She let out a grunt, taking into account that both her wrists and ankles were throbbing and almost numb. Her wrists were bound firmly to the arms of the chair—her ankles to the two front legs of the chair—so firmly that it was practically cutting off her circulation. And when she tried to move them, the course, rough rope rubbed against her skin, bruising and bloodying them.

Okay, this was not good.

Emerald heard sound, like a door opening, and footsteps coming toward her.

"Good morning, sunshine." Todd's voice came. Todd was lucky that her mouth was taped shut or she would've been cussing at him out by now.

Her blindfold was suddenly tugged off, light flooding in through her pupils. The iris's quickly dilated and Emerald blinked as they adjusted to the sudden onslaught of light. The tape was then promptly peeled off her mouth.

Emerald looked around. It was just Todd and two of the other vampires part of the group that had been stalking her for the past several weeks.

"These are a tad bit… tight," she commented, stretching her hands again and wincing as more pain zipped up her arm.

Todd smiled. "Well, we're just giving you the full treatment." he told her lightly, resting his hands on her arms and leaning in toward her face. She turned away, trying to keep her heart at a steady pace. "This rope is bast, just like you use on us."

"But I'm not a vampire." Emerald snarled turning to look at Todd.

Todd caressed her face. She jerked away, her whole body responding, her muscles tensing and trying to wretch themselves from the rope. Emerald let out a hiss, her heart beating rapidly from the immense burning; like acid slowly torching her insides, starting from her fingertips and toes.

The Three Stooges seemed to like seeing her in pain, for they chuckled and smiled as her face twisted into a mask of agony.

"All right, guys, that's enough." a female's voice ordered. Hearing this person's voice stirred something deep in Emerald's memories; memories that were nightmarish and unwanted. The demons within her stirred.

Todd moved out of the way and the woman sauntered forward. With a smirk tugging at the edge of her lips, the dark-haired woman leaned forward, resting a hand on the back of the chair.

"Hello again," she greeted lightly.

Emerald stared back, her brain not believing what the images the eyes were sending to it. She stared at this woman in front of her for another moment as the monsters she'd tried so hard to contain inside broke through the barrier, bursting up through her like a volcano.

"Mom?"

**Whoo, I got it to you quicker! (Thank you PSAT.) I'll try to update this weekend. Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	19. Nineteen

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Carnage

The woman's smile grew wider; her lips were coated in a blood red lipstick. Her hair was just like Emeralds, it was scary. Long, sleek, jet-black, and just on the verge of being curly, but not quite there. She looked older than most of the vampires Emerald killed. Not sixteen, seventeen, or even eighteen. Nineteen, maybe? It had to be, that was the cutoff for vampires. Any older and they'd burn up. It actually surprised Emerald that she was able to change in the first place. She was tall, slim, and had curves in all the right places.

"So you remember me?" she asked.

"One of the mysteries of life." Emerald answered tightly, her face a chalky white.

The woman—Trinity—nodded, her hair bouncing. "Yes, yes…. The child can recognize their mother's face or the sound of her voice, even if they've split at birth."

"_Split._" Emerald spat. "You gave me away. You didn't want me."

The hand that had been resting on the back of the chair grabbed a fistful of Emerald's hair.

"You don't know what you're talking about." Trinity growled, her eyes flashing dangerously, her voice dripping with years upon years of bitterness and resentment. "You're father left us and I couldn't afford to take care of you."

"Then why coming looking for me now?" Emerald asked through clenched teeth, staring evenly into her mother's amethyst eyes.

Trinity's anger died and a smile appeared on her face. She let go of Emerald's hair, and gently ran her fingers through it, like a nurturing, caring mother would. Emerald jerked back flinching. Trinity reached forward, unfazed, and ran her fingers through Emerald's hair once more before patting it down.

"I wanted to get to you before your father did." she answered simply, stepping back.

"You're too late. He already did." Emerald swallowed the bile in her throat as the residual pain of teeth piercing flesh bubbled to the surface. The demons started to claw their way up her throat but she fought to suppress them. "Years ago. Why do you think I am the way I am?" Emerald's voice shook and tears welled up in her eyes, but she refused to let any of them see her cry.

Trinity threw her head back and laughed loudly, sending chills down Emerald's spine. The Three Stooges took an unconscious step back and looked at Trinity unnervingly. A large, cold stone formed in the pit of Emerald's stomach. If these guys were afraid of Trinity, she was the real deal.

"Oh, I know. I know what he did. I know what happened. But that's not what this is about sweetheart." Trinity walked up to her again and brushed some stray hair behind Emerald's ear. She didn't pull away this time.

Emerald waited for Trinity to say more, but she didn't.

Trinity pulled away. "Okay, we're done here."

Todd and Curly stepped forward, one with the blindfold and one with a roll of duct tape.

"Is that really necessary? I mean," Emerald looked around the room. It was vacant with a single light bulb hanging precariously from a thin wire. The walls were a sea green color, moldy in the corners, and peeling. "I don't think I'm going to see anything I'm not supposed to see, and it's not like I'm going to scream because I know that you wouldn't put me somewhere populated."

Trinity looked at Emerald with narrowed eyes and pursed lips. She motioned for the Todd and Curly to stop. She stared at Emerald for a moment a slow smile forming on her face. Then, without a word she walked out the Three Stooges following close behind. Trinity pulled the door closed but it didn't close, not fully anyway and that left a horrible hollow feeling within the pit of Emerald's stomach.

A moment later, which felt like an eternity to Emerald, the door swung open slamming against the rotten wall. Trinity had come back. The smug smile still on her lips. Her eyes were loosely crossed and in one hand a cattle prod.

* * *

><p>The car drove off and Storm turned toward Tasha.<p>

"You don't have to do this." he whispered. "It's not too late to turn back now and just go home. Just wait for me there."

Tasha shook her head. "No. I-I want to help." she told him unconvincingly.

"Tasha, I _can't_ let you go. If you get hurt, or worse—" Storm's throat clogged up just thinking of all the horrible possibilities. "Please, for me, _go home_. I want you to be safe."

"No Storm." Tasha said more forcefully. "I'm not leaving you. What if they came back? What would happen then? I'm not going to sit around the house worrying and waiting for you to return. The feeling is mutual when it comes to your safety. Besides if your father asks where you are you know I'm going to rat you out. I'm a terrible liar."

Storm was still very hesitant. This was a dangerous mission. Tasha could get hurt. Storm could get hurt. Both of them could get hurt. There were so many variables, so many possibilities.

Storm sighed. "Well, if I can't convince you, we have to go now, or we'll run out of time." He grabbed her hand. "Come on, let's go." Making sure no one was around they darted out of the alley and across the street to the old, abandon warehouse that, hopefully, held Emerald inside.

Inside was littered with cots lying on the cement floors, blankets, pillows. The ceiling was littered with holes, large and small, letting in what little light that could leak through. It wasn't the ideal resting place. There was a faint smell of rotting flesh and fresh blood, but Storm and Tasha tried to ignore that and picked their way through to a set of metal stairs that looked like fire-escape stairs made of wood that led up to a balcony. Eyes and heads darting around they made their way up the stairs, Storm still gripping Tasha's hand tightly.

The first door led into a bedroom. If you could call it that. It did have a bed and a single dresser, but the walls were completely bare, and it didn't look like anyone inhabited the place. Like it was just there for decoration. Or—

Storm broke that thought off shuddering.

Emerald was obviously not here so he closed the door and walked further down the balcony to the second door. This was one was actually locked.

"Key?" Tasha asked, eyes flickering to the first door.

Storm shook his head. "No, I think whoever's staying in there would know. That or they'd keep it with them." He reached into his pocket, pulled out two suspicious-looking tools and knelt down so he was eyelevel with the knob.

"Do you know what you're doing?" Tasha asked warily.

Storm reached up inserting one of the thinner tools into the keyhole and with the other hand put the other tool in and started shaking it. "No idea." he finally answered. "I looked it up on YouTube."

Tasha sighed and rolled her eyes. "Move over, slick." she said shoving him aside and taking the tools. In a matter of seconds there was a small click the ears of a vampire could catch and the door slowly swung open. Still smirking Tasha stood and handed the tools back to Storm who was looking at her dumbfounded.

"When did _you_ learn to pick a lock?" Storm asked putting the tools back into his pocket.

"That is for me to know and you to never find out." Tasha sang, her eyebrow quirking up in a mischievous way.

Storm's eyes narrowed. "Why is it always the good girls that have the dark secrets?" he asked.

It was meant to be rhetoric however Tasha smiled and answered with her own question: "Why do you think everyone thinks we're so good?"

Storm was about to reply to that but he saw what was inside the room and his blood ran cold, his heart turning to lead.

"Emerald." he uttered, stepping in and staggering, almost, to the figure in the middle of the room tied crudely to a chair. Carefully, hesitantly, with shaking hands, Storm reached up and tugged the blindfold off her eyes which were closed, before gently peeling the piece of tape off her mouth. They were slightly blue. Storm swiftly took his switchblade out and cut through the ropes, wincing at the state of her wrists and ankles: black and blue, bloody, cut.

Tasha stood at the door, back turned, giving Storm the time he needed.

"Emerald," he whispered taking her into his arms. She didn't move, didn't open her eyes. Storm sunk the floor, his breath coming out quicker and quicker with every passing second; a feeling of dread washing over him; a gaping hole forming in the middle of his chest where his heart beat uselessly. "Wake up, love." He could hear her breathing, he could hear her heartbeat—there but faint, almost nonexistent. "You can't leave me." he told her. "Not now." His grasp tightened on Emerald. "Don't leave me."

Storm set her down in his lap, cradling her with one hand. With the other he reached up and gently stroked her cheek with his thumb. This contact seemed to do something.

The color came back to her lips, her cheeks flushed with a pink, rosy color. Her eyelids fluttered. Storm held his breath. Without warning Emerald flew up onto her feet, facing Storm, who also stood.

"Emerald?" he asked uncertainly. She looked back at him through a curtain of hair that trembled as she did. "It's just me—" he started taking a step forward. Emerald's eyes widened and she lunged at him throwing her fist out. Storm dodged just as she threw her other fist out. This time he caught it, making sure not to grab her wrist.

"It's me," he said quickly. "It's Storm."

Emerald stopped, breathing hard, looking at him, her eyes almost crazed, her breath ragged and broken.

"Storm." she mumbled.

Storm's heart wrenched in his chest. What had happened to her? What had they done to her? It'd only been a few hours.

_A few hours too long, you idiotic failure._ Storm thought bitterly at himself.

"That's right, it's me, Storm." he said slowly. "Do you remember me?"

Emerald chewed her lip and started to shake her head, like she was afraid she would be hurt if she answered wrong.

"I'm your soulmate. Remember?" Storm asked breathlessly. They hadn't brainwashed her, had they? "You have to remember me, Emerald." His hand unconsciously tightened its grip on her arm.

"I'm sorry," she quickly gasped. "P-p-please don't punish me. I-I'm sorry." She meekly pulled at Storm hand with her free one.

Storm's heart sunk to the floor, his head reeled. He let go of her arm and took a step back. She went back to the chair and pulled her knees up to her chest.

"Emerald," Storm said quietly walking up to her. She avoided his gaze and pulled her legs closer to her. Storm continued forward, slowly, making sure he didn't startle her too much. He knelt down next to her, trying to make her look at him. "I'm not going to hurt you." he told her. "I promise." He reached up to gently caress her face.

"Storm," she mumbled again, closing her eyes, putting a hand over his.

"Do you…. Do you remember me?" Storm asked hopefully.

Emerald's eyes opened and she looked down at Storm. Her eyes were watery. Her lower lip trembled delicately. Storm stood and they embraced. Storm held her tightly to him, burying his nose into her hair and inhaling deeply. Her sweet smell comforted him and his comforted her.

"Come on, we need to go." Storm said pulling back. "I'm sorry I took so long." he apologized, gripping her hands in his.

Emerald shook her head and carefully stepped off the chair. "No, no, it's fine."

But Storm could tell it was, in fact, not fine at all. She was hiding something from him, but now was not the time to confront her. They needed to leave before the others came back, which would probably be soon.

"Are you sure you're okay? What… what happened?" Storm asked. Emerald pulled her hands out of his and hugged her stomach, balling the fabric of the side of her shirt in her hands.

"Nothing, nothing. I'm fine." she mumbled turning away and heading toward the door. "I'm fine."

"Okay, let's go." Storm muttered.

The three left the room and quickly made their way down the stairs. But just as they were heading to the door, the door swung open.

* * *

><p>"I'm disappointed," Trinity said stepping inside, followed by her pawns.<p>

"Todd, I should've known." Storm hissed, recognizing the smirking teen standing at Trinity's flank.

"You _know_ him?" Emerald asked looking at Storm with wide, searching eyes.

"Yeah," Storm's eyebrows furrowed. "Don't you… don't you remember? The first night we hung out."

"No, I-I don't…." Emerald trailed off, racking her brain for any memory of meeting this vampire, but she couldn't. Like that night Todd and Emerald had first met had been totally wiped from her memory. Not just suppressed like as much as one of the Night Worlder's could do, but totally nonexistent. "It doesn't matter anyway. We have… other issues to deal with." Emerald's tone became dark as she turned back to the group still standing on the threshold.

"We do have a big problem on our hands, don't we?" Trinity asked lightly. "Somebody hasn't been following the house rules."

Emerald's hands balled into fists and she ground her teeth but otherwise said nothing.

Storm looked back and forth between Emerald and Trinity, starting to make a connection. The same facial structure; high cheek bones, thin, slightly arched eyebrows, full lips, almond-shaped eyes ringed by long lashes, the hair.

"Storm, Tasha," Emerald said tightly not looking away from the woman. "Meet my mom, Trinity."

"So, now that we're done with all the introductions," Trinity started, stepping forward. "What happens now?"

"I don't know what's going to happen, but I know how it'll end." Emerald was quick to respond. "With stakes sticking out of your hearts."

Without another word, the seven vampires working for Trinity rushed at the three of them. Trinity stood where she was and observed. The Three Stooges went for Emerald while the other four went for Tasha and Storm.

Tasha and Storm stood back to back, facing two each. Unfortunately for Storm he couldn't see Emerald and no matter much his heart longed to help her, he knew if he turned his back both he and Tasha would get hurt and with this many vampires on them, that would surely mean death.

But he had to keep focused for himself, Tasha, and Emerald. Especially with the way these guys were fighting. They were tough and very telepathically powerful. It was wearing on the two quickly, and it had only been a few seconds. (He'd just have to trust that Emerald's reputation, the Vigilante, would keep her alive until he found a way to help her.) If Storm wasn't punching one he was getting the other of his back, literally. He needed wood, some sort of weapon, but where? And how?

The stairs! Of course, how could he have not thought of it sooner? Now he just needed a way to get to the stairs….

One of the two threw a punch and Storm quickly dodged and scoffed, "If I were the air, I'd be writhing in pain on the ground right now." Not the best insult, but he was in the middle of the fight and had other things that were much more important than insults on his mind.

But it seemed to work.

"You're going to regret that, vermin-lover." he snarled, baring his fangs.

"Keep talking, someday you'll say something intelligent." Storm replied with a smirk.

The guy lunged. Storm quickly dodged and sprinted toward the stairs. Both of Trinity's cohorts ran after him. As soon as he hit the staircase Storm reached up and ripped part of the railing off, it breaking and splintering easily. Storm turned just in time to jab the makeshift stake into one of the vampire's hearts. He gaped, his eyes going wide.

"I've got a little _tip_ for you, get the _point_?" He was on a roll now, having a little too much fun for a fight to the death. Storm removed the stake and took on the other. He was tougher to beat, obviously, but she didn't have much skill. She was probably new to all of this. Made just so Trinity had another disposable pawn in her twisted game of chess.

Storm felt slightly guilty about what his intentions were for her, but thinking of how she'd hurt Emerald at some point in time, helped him keep his goal in mind. And there it was: his opening. Without hesitating he thrust the wooden piece through the girl's heart.

Tasha yelped. Storm quickly turned, taking his weapon with him, looking for Tasha. She was on the floor, one vampire standing over her, smiling triumphantly. The other vampire she'd been taking on had disappeared and so had Trinity.

"Tasha!" Storm yelled. She dared to look over at him and he chucked the weapon toward her. Her eyes burned brightly with that inner fire and she lunged to grab it, leaving her back exposed. Storm held his breath as he pounced. "Look out!" he couldn't help but warn.

She gripped the stake and turned, shoving it blindly into him, her own heart pounding behind her ribcage. Her hands, shaking profusely, slackened and the vampire fell atop of her. She pushed him off and crawled away, trying to calm herself. Storm ran over to her and took her hand.

"Are you okay?" he asked, breathing hard.

Tasha nodded, not looking at Storm but at the dead body lying a few feet away from them. She'd never killed anyone in her life. Especially her own kind. She'd never seen anyone dead. Not even humans. And it was shocking, being thrown into this kind of reality. A horrible, bloody, cruel reality that Storm had seen almost every night as the Reaper. And seeing her here, like this, in such a shocked state made Storm feel guilty for ever associating himself with that world.

A low rumble started from somewhere before something wet and icy cold hit the back of Storm's neck. He looked up and held out a hand, to get hit with more of those little wet drops, that he realized was rain. The clouds had come in and so had the storm. Thunder rumbled and lighting flashed as more rain started to fall.

Tasha's eyes widened and she gasped softly. "Emerald." she muttered.

Storm stood and turned, his eyes searching for her. He found her just in time to see her get thrown across the room and into the rickety staircase, which collapsed under the weight being thrown at it.

"Emerald!" Storm cried, the breath whooshing form his lungs, taking a step in her direction. Tasha stood and touched his arm.

"Wait," she whispered, barely hear over the now, pouring rain, soaking both Tasha and Storm, for they were standing over one of the large holes in the ceiling.

He looked at her. "Wait? I need to go help her—" He almost took off again but Tasha grabbed his hand firmly and shook her head.

"No. This is her battle. She needs to finish this by herself." Tasha told him. Storm looked at her helplessly. "Trust me. She's got this."

He looked at her for another moment before turning his attention back to where Emerald had landed. All that he could see was a large pile of wood and a hanging staircase, leading to the second floor. Storm's heart wrenched at the sight but he forced his feet to stay glued to the spot.

Todd smiled while Curly leisurely walked over the pile. Storm's hand fisted and his vision flooded with red. Tasha's hand held his even tighter, to the point of pain, like she knew he was about to charge over there at any given moment.

Curly climbed onto some of the wood carefully and leaned over, peering down. To what, Storm couldn't see. He held his breath and watched as the world around him quieted and dimmed, leaving nothing in his view but Curly and the pile of wood he was standing on.

The darkness shattered as something flew at Curly. Blinking, Storm realized that it was a long, piece of wood, sticking straight out of Curly's back. Emerald rose from the pile, almost like Nosferatu, it was scary. She was still holding the stake, but released it and as Curly fell to the ground, she grabbed another piece of broken stair and stepped down from the pile and over Curly.

The rain sprinkled down on her, but she didn't seemed disturbed by this at all. "You throw like a girl." she said flipping the weapon in her hand.

Todd growled and just like that sped toward her.

Storm watched Emerald in awe and wonder. How she moved, how she fought. It was like watching one of those ninja movies or something. Agile, quick, smooth; her eyes focused and clear, letting nothing interrupt her.

Tasha suddenly gasped and something hit Storm. Not ready for this, he lost his balance and hit the concrete floor, as sharp pain ran through his arm. Gripping his arm, Storm rolled over onto his back and struggled to sit up.

"Tasha, what—" Storm broke off when he looked up and saw Tasha with the very stake they'd used to kill those three other vampires sticking out of her chest….

**I will try my very hardest to update tomorrow night. (Sorry about the cliffy, I just can't help myself.) But, again, tomorrow night.**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	20. Twenty

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Rainfall

All the pain disappeared from Storm's body as soon as he saw Tasha. He couldn't believe his eyes. All this crap about protecting her and she'd been the one who gave her life for his. This wasn't happening. It couldn't have been.

Emerald ran over and battled off Tasha's attacker but Storm was paying no attention to that anymore. All he could see was Tasha and the wood sticking out from her chest.

He stood slightly as Tasha fell back. He caught her in his arms and sunk slowly to the floor, holding her tightly to him, letting her rest her head on his shoulder.

Tears spilled uncontrollably from Storm's eyes. Tasha looked up at him, eyes sad, but clear, like she'd accepted her death already.

"Please…" she choked, reaching up slowly to touch the stake. "Help…."

Taking a deep breath, Storm slowly reached up and pulled it out as gently as he could. Tasha convulsed and gasped. Storm's arms tightened and he dropped the weapon before caressing her cheek.

"You're okay. You're going to be okay. I'm so sorry. You didn't have to do that for me. You _shouldn__'__t_ have done that for me." he cried. "Tasha, I… I can't—"

"Shh, shh," Tasha cooed, holding her trembling hand up. Storm took it into his. "Not… your fault." she told him her voice weak and quiet. The rain seemed to have gotten louder, colder; it came down in sheets, soaking both of them to the bone. "I made… the choice. You and… Emerald—"

"I need you too," Storm sobbed. "I need you too. I can't lose you!"

"Don't… worry. I'm fine. I don't… I'm not… in any pain." she said, blinking, forcing her eyelids to stay open for a little while longer, fighting against the response to a stake to the heart; fighting against the inevitable. "You've kept me safe… all these years. You've… taken care of me… all these years. You… saved… me."

"No, no, I can't let you go. I can't let you leave me. I'd do anything for you. Anything. I love you, Tasha. I love you _so __much_." Storm whispered.

Tasha's wounded heart thumbed and jumped in her chest. "Just… just hold me. You… being here… is all I… need." she assured him. "You can't stop what's… going to… happen."

"I won't. I could never leave you. I will never, ever leave you." Storm promised, his heart aching. Tasha smiled and focused on Storm's arms around her, holding her, protecting her, sheltering her. She enjoyed the rain that was still falling down upon them, but less aggressively now. It was an interesting sensation, the rain smelled wonderful and brought with it new things; washing away the old to make room for the new.

Tasha closed her eyes for a moment, feeling at peace with everything that had happened throughout her life. None of it _really_ mattered. All that mattered was that she had Storm and she was with Storm now. That she would be able to sleep in his arms for all eternity, nothing was stopping her now.

She was blessed to have Storm come into her life. Blessed to have such a loyal, trustworthy, loving older brother. It was a miracle is what it was; he was her guardian angel delivered to her doorstep to help lead her over the bumps and blocks in the road that was her life.

Tasha opened her eyes again, wanting to see Storm's beautiful face. Instead she saw stars. It had stopped raining, the sky had cleared. And although the lights of the city should be blocking out the stars, she could see them. Billions and billions of them, blazing brightly, winking at her.

She looked over at Storm again and removed her hand from his so she could caress his face.

"I love you, Storm." she breathed, no longer able to hold on. "'Will you still… love me… in the morning?'" she quoted from one of her all-time favorite movies, _Click_.

"'Forever and ever, babe.'" Storm replied in a shaky whisper, smiling through his tears for her sake.

Tasha's eyes slowly closed, her hand dropping from Storm's face, and her head falling into his shoulder.

She was finally home.

* * *

><p>"It's over Trinity." Emerald told her, twirling the long, thin stick in her hand that she'd ripped from the staircase.<p>

They were standing in the small bedroom on the second floor. Emerald hadn't failed to notice that as the fight continued on and she realized that they were losing, she'd jumped up to the second floor and hid like a scared little girl in the room she called a bedroom. Emerald had quickly followed—thankfully the staircase had been low enough for her to grab if she jumped—and was now confronting her.

"Whoever taught you, taught you well." Trinity said grudgingly. "You've wasted all my clan."

"I think you mean pawns. You didn't care about them." Emerald snarled at her mother.

"I'm not the one who killed them." Trinity stated calmly.

Emerald's hand tightened on her stake and she gritted her teeth. "I had no choice. It was me or them."

Trinity smiled. "You could care less about them than I could."

"I am not _you_. I will never be like _you_." Emerald spat, her voice shaking, trying not to let her mother's comments bother her.

"I've been watching you, sweetheart." she murmured. "I know you better than yourself." Trinity walked forward, toward her daughter slowly. Emerald didn't move. She watched her with her eyes carefully, scrutinizing every move Trinity made. "Just admit it. You like killing our kind, don't you." she said in a melodic voice. "You've killed them without a single regret for three years. And yet, here you stand, unharmed, undisturbed."

"That's not true." Emerald said, tears swelling up behind her eyes.

"Not now maybe, but before you met Storm…." Trinity trailed letting Emerald finish her thought.

"Only because of what they did." Emerald objected through her teeth. She spun without warning lashing out at Trinity with her stake. Trinity caught the two times she tried to get a hit in.

"Yes, but you've got your revenge. How many vampires _have_ you killed?" Trinity asked before taking a couple shots of her own. Emerald easily dodged, blocking one.

"I haven't even gotten close to achieving my goal. I haven't found _him_ yet." Emerald jabbed and slashed, but Trinity jumped back and intercepted.

"But you have found his buddies, correct?" Trinity asked.

"It was too easy. They're not the sharpest tools in the shed."

"But you enjoyed it, didn't you?" Trinity asked. "It's okay to admit it. We all have secrets. Yours are just darker than most."

"No." Emerald answered in a low voice. "I didn't. I don't enjoy. I don't get angry. I don't feel sad. Emotions don't help. They blind you. Fog your judgment, make you make bad decisions. If I fought with emotions, I'd be dead already."

"You keep telling yourself that, honey." Trinity mocked. "But what keeps you going? Keeps you going back to the street to kill more and more of my kind? Is it because you feel neutral about us? Or is it because of the anger that you'd built up inside for us? For what we did to you.

"Because, my dear, I would call that anger and vengeance. Now, if I'm not mistaken, I do believe that anger and vengeance are emotions."

"I don't enjoy killing!" Emerald snapped. "I don't! I'm not a monster!" Without thinking she lashed out at Trinity with her makeshift stake, but she easily deflected it and it went clattering out of Emerald's hand, sliding across the floor.

Trinity smiled. "You're right. You can't let emotions control how you fight. You never really know what's going to happen." She walked forward toward Emerald, who was glowering at her. That was sneaky, using the very thing she had tried so hard to keep repressed against her.

How stupid could Emerald have been? Letting Trinity do that to her. She shouldn't have. She really shouldn't have.

Trinity walked up to Emerald and took hold of her neck, pushing her back against the wall. She didn't have a strong grip, her airways still open, but who knew how long that would last.

Instinctively, Emerald reached up with both of her hands to hold Trinity's wrist. She pressed her lips together tightly and glared at her mother.

"What do you want?" Emerald asked. "What's so important that you had to get to me before my father?"

Trinity made a noise at the back of her throat, almost like a laugh, but not quite. "You're much too young to understand just how important you are to us."

"I'm seventeen," Emerald spat. "You're only two years older than me; I think I can keep up."

Trinity's had twitched and tightened its grip on Emerald's neck cutting off her windpipe this time. Emerald dug her nails into Trinity's wrist, but did nothing to push Trinity away. Besides, if Trinity needed Emerald for something she wasn't going to kill her.

"You're a stubborn girl!" Trinity growled finally removing her hand and backhanding Emerald, who fell to the ground coughing and gasping for air. Emerald looked up at Trinity as her head cleared.

"Well that's something we have in common." Emerald told her sitting up.

Trinity reached down and grabbed a fistful of Emerald's hair, pulling her to her feet. "Don't you mock me! That is no way to treat your mother." she hissed.

"I don't see a mother. I see a pathetic woman who turned to becoming an immortal vampire after heartbreak." Emerald retorted. "Why'd you do it? Running away from responsibility? Just wanted that wonderful feeling of a broken heart forever? Revenge on my father? Or, swinging in the other direction, trying to win his heart back by presenting me to him as a peace offering?"

With a shriek Trinity threw Emerald down onto the floor again. "You don't know what you're talking about!" she cried. She may have supposed to been 35, but she still had the mentality of a 19-year-old. "He left me to fend for myself! He left me to take care of a baby all by myself! And I just couldn't! I was only eighteen!" She continued.

"You need to grow up," Emerald groaned, looking up at Trinity.

Suddenly the cattle prod appeared in her hand.

"You'd better watch the way you speak to me, young lady. I still have the upper hand." To prove her point she poked Emerald's side.

Emerald rolled away, trying to get away from the intense pain, and tried not to scream too loud. When Trinity pulled the prod away, Emerald was breathing hard, tears brimming her eyes. Without a word, Emerald pushed herself to her elbows and started to slowly crawl away from Trinity.

"When I'm through with you, you're going to wish you were dead." Trinity told Emerald, following slowly. "It's over." She prodded Emerald again in the back. Emerald gritted her teeth and held her breath waiting for the pain to stop. "I win."

Emerald's hand wrapped tightly around the thin piece of wood and she chuckled. "You're wrong, Trinity." she sang softly. Not giving Trinity time to respond Emerald leapt up, stake in hand, and thrust it upward into Trinity's chest. She stumbled back but did the opposite of what Emerald thought: she chuckled and smiled.

"It doesn't end, does it?" Trinity asked in a weak voice, as she sunk to the floor. Emerald slowly knelt down with her mother, her hands not releasing the stake.

"It will when I find him." Emerald claimed, her voice shaking.

Trinity laughed and shook her head as the light started to fade from her eyes. "That's a lie and we both know it, my sweet. I mean, look at you"—Trinity reached up wrapping one hand around the stake and taking the other and putting it over Emerald's. She didn't pull away—"to go so far as to kill your own mother. The one who gave you life."

"You left me no choice!" Emerald objected her voice tight and thick.

"Just give in to it Emerald," Trinity whispered leaning forward and wincing. "Give in to them and you'll be much happier. Stop lying to yourself and you'll be free."

Emerald blinked and tears slid down her cheeks. She shook her head. "I won't. I won't. I'm not a monster."

Trinity simply smiled and laughed again before the light in her eyes died completely and her hands went slack. Emerald let go of the stake and Trinity fell to the floor, a wicked smile still on her lips.

Emerald stood and quickly wiped away her tears, sniffling. She needed to get back downstairs.

* * *

><p>Emerald walked down the remaining steps and jumped to the ground floor nimbly. Storm was standing next to a body covered with one of the sheets from around the warehouse. He looked down upon it morosely, his heart aching, his eyes dull.<p>

"It's my fault," Storm murmured as Emerald slowly walked up him.

"No, it's not yours. It's mine. I pulled you into this. You didn't have to come looking for me." Emerald responded the guilt weighing down on her shoulders.

"No, I let her come. I should've made her stay home. If she had, none of this would've happened."

Emerald took his hand. "But then you'd be dead and I—" She broke off, shaking her head.

"Let's not do this." Storm sighed. "We need to… clean the area."

Emerald thought of her dead mother and shuddered.

"I can't… I can't go back up there." she choked.

"I'll do it." Storm said pulling his hand from hers and walking toward the stairs.

Emerald knelt down next to the body and pinched the corner of the blanket before slowly tugging it back. A lock of silver hair fluttered down and Emerald quickly dropped the blanket back into place, her stomach churning. Yet another death.

Was it ever going to end?

Taking a deep breath, and with a softest touch, Emerald tucked Tasha's body in the blanket, wrapped loosely like the Egyptians would wrap their dead. Emerald looked up and over her shoulder to see Storm disappear into the room where her mother was. Taking a deep breath she turned back around and gently lifted Tasha's body into her arms, careful not to jostle it too much.

Taking measured, moderate steps, Emerald headed outside and set Tasha down on the sidewalk to wait for Storm.

"We need a way to my house." Storm said monotoned, coming to stand next to Emerald. "I can't call my dad. I'm not ready to tell him—" Storm broke off, his head turning to look over at the body.

"I can call someone. I don't know that he'd do it. But I can try." Emerald muttered. "Do you have a phone I could borrow?"

Storm pulled his recently acquired cell from his pocket and handed it to Emerald. She walked down the street and turned the corner, not so far that he couldn't still hear her, but far enough that he couldn't hear what she was saying.

But from what he could tell, she sounded angry, or frustrated as she fought with this person on the phone.

As her conversation took longer and longer, Storm's mind strayed to that singular moment that Tasha had shoved him out of the way. How stupid of him! How could he have gotten so distracted like that? There was so many things that he could've done. He could've saved Tasha! He could've prevented from either of them getting hurt or dying! It was all his fault. It didn't matter what other people said, if he hadn't been distracted Tasha would still be alive right now!

Storm let out a growl and shook his head, Tasha's wrapped-up body catching his eye. Her dying face haunted his mind, refusing to leave, always there when he closed his eyes, sometimes there when his eyes were open.

Storm took a step toward her, wanting to see her again, but Emerald's hand grabbed his arm.

"You don't want to see her like that." she murmured. Storm's hand fisted and he closed his eyes. She was right, Tasha would've mummified by now. Seeing her in that state wouldn't make anything better.

Emerald slipped her hand into his and they both sat on the curb and waited for the mysterious person that Emerald kept a secret.

Finally the thrum of a car shook the street, and the sound of a humming engine floated down the nearly empty district.

A black Honda Pilot stopped in front of the two. Emerald rose to meet the boy, Hal, getting out of the car. He was stiff, his eyes darting around; when he spotted Storm his eyes widened and he went rigid.

"What is _that_ doing here?" he asked.

Storm stood, but Emerald quickly stepped in front of the Hal.

"I told you already that he'd be here." she said in a low voice.

"You didn't tell me that it was the Reaper." Hal spat. "This is a set-up, isn't this? I knew I couldn't trust you. After you performed that stunt and let _that_"—Hal gestured to Storm with his chin—"go."

"You owe me, remember?" Emerald reminded him.

Hal clenched and unclenched his fists. "What do you need?"

Emerald stepped back, relaxing slightly and instructed, "Open the trunk."

Hal assessed the situation and noticed the body, putting two and two together he made a disgusted face but walked back, always keeping an eye on Storm, and opened his trunk.

Emerald looked at Storm who turned and picked up Tasha's body and reluctantly set her down on the floor of the car. Storm stepped back and Hal closed the trunk but something must've happened and Hal and Storm came into contact.

With a hiss Storm shoved Hal away roughly. "Watch it _vermin_!"

Hal shoved back. "You watch it blood sucker!"

Before it could amount to anything else Emerald quickly jumped between the two, holding her hands out and looking back and forth between them.

"Guys," Emerald warned. "Don't do this." She looked at Storm. "Now is not the time." She enunciated slowly and carefully.

Storm glared at Hal for another minute before turning his heel and getting into the backseat of the car.

"Charming," Hal commented.

Emerald made a face. "Just shut up and drive." she muttered walking around to the passenger's side.

**Sorry ****for ****the ****delay, ****you ****know ****school. ****Hope ****you ****enjoyed! ****I****'****d ****like ****to ****credit**** "****A ****Little ****Fall ****of ****Rain****" ****from ****the ****opera **_**Les **__**Misérables**_**, ****for ****helping ****me ****write ****Tasha****'****s ****death ****scene. ****(You ****should ****go ****listen ****to ****it, ****like, ****right ****now****… 10th Anniversary is the best.****)**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	21. Twenty One

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Deception

Emerald let out a long sigh, sitting back in one of the chairs in her living room, in her suite. She closed her eyes and thought about all the things that had happened that night. In only one night! She couldn't believe so much could happen in so little time. It wasn't even past eleven.

Emerald opened her eyes and looked at the clock. She should get to bed. After all she still had school tomorrow. Now it may have sounded inconsiderate, after Tasha died, but life had to go on. That was the only thing that kept Emerald sane nowadays, the only thing that kept her going. The hope for the future. The hope that there would be a better tomorrow. She was going to mourn Tasha's death. She died saving Emerald's life after all. But things had to keep moving forward.

Emerald walked into her room and was just getting ready to lie down when someone knocked on her door, frantically. Who would be knocking on her door at eleven at night? And if it was urgent, because the way this person was knocking sounded pretty urgent, what could it possibly mean? What news did they bring?

Too tired to look through the peep-hole—which probably wasn't the best idea—Emerald opened the door, only to be engulfed by strong, cold, wet arms.

It was Storm.

And he was drenched in arctic rain water.

Emerald was too stunned at first to comprehend what was going on. Just that, as Storm held her to him tightly, the water running off of him soaked into her own clothes, making goose bumps rise on her arms. Storm's hair dripped and shined with little droplets of water. One of his hands came up to knot itself in Emerald's hair. Storm inhaled deeply, exhaling through his mouth, his icy breath wafting across Emerald's neck.

"Storm, what—" Emerald tried weakly.

"I had to see you." he whispered, not letting go, or slackening his hold on her.

"What—" She broke off again, still getting over the shock of all this. "What happened?"

Storm pulled back, moving his hands to her arms, still holding her tightly. His chest was heaving. "I ran here." he told her. "It's pouring outside."

"But, why?" Emerald asked shaking her head, still not understanding. "Why don't you come in." She said quickly, pulling out of his grasp, closing the door and then taking his hand and leading him into the living room.

"Emerald," Storm said quietly, trying to get her attention.

But Emerald was afraid of what was going to happen. Storm didn't do rash things like run all the way to the Marriott from his house in the pouring rain. Sure vampires didn't get sick or cold, even, but still. This wasn't Storm. She was afraid of what he came here for. She didn't want to face it. Not now. Not after everything that had happened that night.

"Have a seat," Emerald said, taking her hand out of his and gesturing to a chair. "I'll go get a towel for you to dry off."

She started to head away, but Storm wasn't going to let her off that easily. He needed to talk to her immediately. He had run across town in the pouring rain. He wasn't about to wait until Emerald was ready.

"Emerald!" Storm hissed. Emerald stopped and turned to look at him, her eyes wide. Storm walked up to her and grasped her shoulders. "Emerald, please just listen to me." he begged quietly.

She shook her head, her ebony locks trembling as she did so. "I-I-I don't want to do this." Her voice shook and her eyes watered.

"Just listen to me!" Storm pleaded, shaking her slightly. "I know you said that you wanted to be good friends. To work things out. To wait." Storm continued on quickly when Emerald hadn't spoken. "But I _can__'__t_ any longer. I don't want to be friends! I don't want to wait! I love you Emerald! You're my soulmate and I _need_ you." Storm's voice started to shake and tears formed in his own, electrifying, eyes.

"Storm, I—" Emerald broke off as tears slid down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away. "I just don't know." she whispered. "I just… I just—"

"Emerald, losing Tasha was just as hard as losing my mother. She was like a sister I never had. I loved her. And now she's gone. I-I only have you and Dad left—"

"Storm—" Emerald tried.

"No! You don't understand! Life it too short for us to be just friends. I love you. I want to be with you forever and always. I can't lose you too. I've already lost so much in my life."

Emerald blinked and more tears spilled down her face, but she didn't wipe them away this time. "This is too much for me." she whispered, her lower lip trembling. "There is a reason that I asked to just be friends. It won't last. I just need more time. _Please_."

Storm, his chest still heaving, let his hands slide off Emerald's arms. He took a step back, looking at Emerald. His expression was unreadable, the emotion in his eyes were undecipherable.

"Just say the word," Storm finally murmured. "Just say the word and I will walk out that door and never, ever bother you again. You won't have to see me, you won't have to talk to me, interact with me, or hear from me again. Just say the word."

Emerald looked at him shocked. She opened her mouth and for a scary moment Storm actually thought she was going to tell him to leave and not come back, but to his relief no words came out.

He waited another moment and when Emerald still said nothing he said, "Time's up." Before taking her head in his hands and pressing his lips against hers. She responded almost simultaneously, kissing him back; her arms had flown up in surprise as if to push him away, but instead she wrapped them around his neck, knotting one of her hands in his soaked hair.

Her eyes closed and she pressed her overheated body against his: fire and ice.

Emerald pulled away for air. Both Storm and Emerald were breathing hard.

"I love you," Emerald whispered, tears now streaming down her face. "I love you."

Storm smiled and kissed her again, slower. "I love you, too." he said after pulling away. "I love you, too."

* * *

><p>Emerald sharply took in a breath, her eyes snapping open. Her heart fluttered and her chest heaved. She slowly sat up, looking around, slightly disoriented for a moment, forgetting where she was for a moment. Slowly it came back to her. Storm had to leave so Emerald had made the snap decision to walk back to his house with him. It had stopped raining (thankfully) by that time.<p>

The night was thick and humid; the streets alight with all of the signs of Manhattan. They walked slowly and leisurely back to his house in a comfortable silence, holding each other's hands, like any other teenage couple. No worries. No death. No reputations that could get you killed at any moment of any day.

Storm had dried off and changed when they'd gotten back to his house, Emerald having fallen sound asleep on his bed.

Emerald looked over at Storm's alarm clock. It'd only been an hour since she'd fallen asleep. Her shoulders and eyelids drooped just thinking about how much sleep she'd gotten in the past few days. She was so tired, so tired that she felt she was no longer able to sleep.

Especially after a nightmare like that—

Emerald slipped off the bed, careful to not disturb Storm and quietly opened the door to the balcony. The air was cooler, and a breeze blew through, making Emerald shiver. She crossed her arms, hunching her shoulders, and walked out to the railing, looking out over at the sky and for once, she yearned to see the stars, the moon. Something about seeing such a beautiful sight comforted her. Alas, in a place like this, a city that never slept, it was next to impossible.

One of the French doors opened slightly and Storm stepped out.

"Emerald?" he asked quietly cautiously coming to stand next to her. She looked away, still haunted by the vivid dream she'd had not even moments ago. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." she answered just as quiet, a little too quickly.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Storm asked.

"Not really."

There was a pause. "You'll feel better."

Emerald rolled her eyes and looked at Storm. "They just say that." Emerald took a deep breath. "I've tried. It doesn't work. I just don't see why talking about something painful to someone else is going to help? I mean it's like opening old wounds. It's unnecessary and just… and just causes more pain." Her eyes tightened and she looked away again.

"I know about the dreams." Storm finally admitted.

Emerald froze. "How? When?"

A smile pulled at Storm's lips. "I'm your soulmate, we have a connection." The smile faded. "I don't have all the details, but… stuff filters through the connection. Not… images or anything, but emotions. Horror. Fear. Disbelief. They always came when I was sleeping so I kind of filled in the rest and assumed you were having nightmares. You can tell me anything. I'm here for you. I'll always be here for you."

"I dream," Emerald confirmed. Storm waited. "About me and you." Storm prepared himself for the rest. This obviously wasn't going to end in fluffy bunnies. "And you… always… Well I… I mean—" Emerald broke off, unable to say it out loud. Like it would just make it more tangible, and she wished they'd just stay in her mind, locked with all the other little monstrosities. "I die." she finally stated quickly before she lost her nerve. "Because you kill me."

"You know—You know I'd never do that to you. I mean, I'm your soulmate. I couldn't live without you. Why would I ever want to… to kill you? That just doesn't make sense. I don't understand—"

"Storm, Storm," Emerald urged, taking his head in her hands and forcing him to look at her. "I know. I know you'd never do anything of that sort. But…" she trailed off letting her hands fall to her sides. "It just feels so real. I can't get over it." she whispered, her lower lip trembling.

Storm took her in to his arms, gently stroking her hair. "It's okay," he assured her. "You're okay. I promise, I won't let any harm come to you. We'll figure this out together."

Emerald sighed. _I __hope __so._ She thought silently.

* * *

><p>"What are we going to do about Anthony?" Emerald asked, switching her books out for her next three periods. "I mean, you don't just attack someone like that for no reason. He <em>has<em> to be working for someone in the Night World."

"Are you even sure this has anything to do with the Night World. I mean, it could be part of some gang initiation, or something." Storm suggested. "We can't just jump to conclusions."

Emerald closed her locker and slung one of the straps of her bag over her shoulder. Both her and Storm started walking to the cafeteria.

"Okay, first of all gang initiations are seeing if you've got what it takes to kill someone on command." she stated.

"How would you know—" Storm started looking at her crazily.

"Secondly," Emerald continued not letting him finish. "He is not that strong. Lean, yes. Soccer player, yes. But they run around a lot, they work their whole body out. You know, their muscles are… just aren't like a wrestler's or a boxer's or a football player's. I mean, I'm not saying anything bad about soccer players, I'm just saying I really don't think they have that much upper body strength."

"But, you were a little out of it. You said he did have chloroform, right? Maybe you just… weren't as strong then." Storm offered.

"Why are you trying to protect him?" Emerald exclaimed frustrated. "Do you have some kind of bro-mance going on that I don't know about?"

Storm made a face. "No, of course not! I'm just… trying to give him the benefit of the doubt is all. Everyone deserves that, right? Besides, you said that he'd always been the quiet kid."

"Fine, we'll give him the benefit of the doubt." Emerald muttered, stopping just outside the cafeteria doors and looking through the windows at all the teens sitting with their friends or standing in lines, waiting for food. "So, where are we going to start, then?"

"If you mean information on him, then I'm not really sure." Storm said truthfully. Then he spotted Mackenzie, Danny, and Carter. "Hey, maybe Carter knows. She did date him, right?"

"I suppose… but why would Anthony tell her anything about the Night World?" Emerald asked wary.

"He may have not told her about the Night World, but there had to be something she noticed that was off, or some conversation she overheard, or something she saw, you know?" he suggested.

"Okay… let's say that did happen. How would I get it out of her? She took that break-up really hard and is still getting over it. I don't want to push the knife in deeper. I'm her friend, I'm supposed be there for her and do my best to _not_ make things worse."

"Girl talk," Storm suggested shrugging.

Emerald looked at him weirdly. "Girl talk?" she mimicked. "What… what is girl talk? How do I do that?"

Storm's eyebrows raised. "You're a girl. But you don't know how to girl talk?"

Emerald rolled her eyes. "Is there a difference between talking and 'girl' talking? I don't get it. I'm confused."

"Emerald, this isn't rocket science. Keep up with me, here. All you have to do is talk to her to get the information out of her." Storm explained slowly.

"But how?"

"Were you not listening? Girl talk. You know… do whatever girls do. Talk about… clothes and shoes and make-up and stuff. I don't know! I'm not a girl."

"Thank God." Emerald muttered. "And since when have you ever thought that I was some kind of girly-girl?"

"I-I don't know—" Storm started.

"Okay, all right, Mr. Smarty Pants. Because you seem to know so much about how this works why don't _you_ tell me how to 'girl' talk."

"Well… Pretend I'm a girl with information that you want. What would you do?" he asked.

Emerald looked at him exasperated. "You want me to beat it out of her?"

Storm groaned. "Just ask her to hang out with you and just talk. Take her to the skate park sometime, skate a little and then hang out with her at your place."

"Whatever," Emerald sighed. "Let's just get this over with." Storm opened the door for her and she walked in muttering, "I don't see why we can't just jump to conclusions. It'd be so much easier to just knock him out, tie him and then make him squeal."

Storm rolled his eyes and followed her inside.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you're letting me do this!" Carter squealed hopping onto Emerald's bed, next to her. "I never thought I'd see the day that I'd get to give you a manicure."<p>

Emerald plastered a painful smile on her face. "Well… you know me. Always surprising my friends."

"I just never pictured you as a paint-your-nails type." Carter stated taking out all the torture devices from a small purse.

"I'm not." Emerald muttered pouting.

Carter rolled her eyes and held out one of her hands. Emerald groaned and slowly brought her hand forward. When Carter took it she jumped like she'd just been bitten by a snake.

"Oh, you complain too much." Carter sighed examining Emerald's nails before shaking her head. "My, my, my, what have you been doing to your poor nails!" she exclaimed.

Emerald pulled her hand away and looked at them. "Are they really that bad?"

"Nothing I can't fix. They're actually, really not too horrible. I like your nails." Carter sighed. "They much longer than mine." She held up her hands to look at her own. "I have a bad habit of chewing on them sometimes…. Anyway, you'll have beautiful nails when I'm done."

Reluctantly Emerald let Carter take her hand again and with that she got to work. While Carter did this they chatted about trivial things, just the break the ice: English homework, the scandals going on around school, Mackenzie and Danny's blossoming relationship, some funny jokes Carter had heard lately.

"So…" Emerald started, trying to think of a way to bring up Anthony. "You… you seem happier lately." she commented, looking down as Carter cleaned out all the junk from underneath Emerald's nails, sneaking a peak to see her reaction. She didn't seem to notice where this was going just yet.

"Yeah, I'm usually a happy person." Carter shrugged.

"I admire that," Emerald murmured. "How are you feeling?"

"Feeling about what?" Carter asked slowly still focusing mostly on Emerald's nails.

"Um…" Emerald took a deep breath. "Anthony." As soon as his name came out of Emerald's mouth Carter gouged underneath her nail with the tool, thankfully it didn't bleed. Emerald flinched and Carter pulled way.

"Fine." she told Emerald tightly carefully setting aside the tool and picking up another. "Hand, please." she requested. Taking a deep breath, Emerald handed one of her hands back to Carter. "Why do you ask?" she finally queried as she began to file her nails.

"Well… he's been acting… off lately. Have you noticed?" Emerald quickly came up with a explanation, cursing herself silently for not having a back-up story before bringing this up.

"No, not really." Carter's answer a brisk and to the point.

Emerald knew that she really didn't want to talk about this topic, but it was important.

"Oh, well… he has. And I was just wondering if… maybe you noticed while… while you guys were together." Emerald mumbled almost incoherently.

Carter slowed with her filing and sighed heavily. Her brows scrunched together as she thought.

"Well, I do remember this one time…. I, kind of, overheard a conversation he was having on the phone. He was speaking really low so I wasn't really sure, but your name… your name came up a lot and it didn't sound too friendly." Carter stopped and sat back, looking up at Emerald. "I don't know what's going on, Emerald, but I don't think you should be messing with this stuff. I'm really worried about this, about you. I don't want you getting hurt."

_Too __late._ Emerald thought bitterly. On the outside she smiled. "I'm glad I have a great friend like you." she said.

"Awe! I'm glad we're friends too!" Carter squealed before leaning forward and engulfing Emerald in a hug. When she pulled away she wiped her eyes. "Okay, let's finish your manicure."

Emerald made a face. "Yay." she cheered half-heartedly.

Carter ignored this and brought out a small bottle that she sneakily concealed the color of. After giving it a good shake she twisted the cap open and asked for Emerald's hand once more. But as she took the brush out Emerald pulled back.

"Hot pink? Can't it be, like, skin color?" she asked disgusted.

"It's not hot pink! It's ruby red." Carter objected.

"No, no, I'm pretty sure that it's hot pink."

"And I'm pretty sure that is ruby red. You're just seeing things."

"Are you sure you're not messing with me right now?" Emerald narrowed her eyes. Carter smiled innocently back. Finally, very slowly, Emerald let Carter take her hand and start painting.

The paint was surprisingly cold and looked weird. Emerald didn't like it or the smell. How did girls do this all the time? Why did they have to paint their nails anyway? What was the point? Did it make them look more attractive? Did guys even like painted nails?

When all was said and done, it actually wasn't bad. They did look nice, and it had made Carter very happy. So, in the end it was worth it.

"Thanks again, I had such a fun time!" Carter said as Emerald walked her to the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow as school?" Emerald asked.

"Always." Carter confirmed smiling.

Only, she wasn't and neither was Mackenzie or Danny (mysteriously). And the day after that, still a no-show, and the day after that. After the third day, Emerald started to get a really bad feeling about this.

Every time she called any of their houses though, their mom's or dad's would pick up and they'd say they were sick. For some reason that wasn't comforting. Emerald wanted to hear her friend's voices for herself. She wanted to hear straight from her friends that they _were_ sick, but whenever she asked for any of them, their parents would suddenly make up an excuse to hang up.

Finally, on the fourth day the office called her in—in the middle of class, mind you—saying she had a phone call for her. At first Emerald thought it was going to be Alan or Alecia about something she'd done wrong, or about some family thing they were including her in just because they felt bad, something normal. But Emerald should've known by now her life was never going to be normal.

Ms. Greene led her into a small office with the phone unhooked, lying on the table, waiting for her.

"Thanks," Emerald told Ms. Greene before she headed out. Emerald picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"E-E-Emerald?" a small whisper came.

"Carter! Oh my God! You haven't been to school for three days! Neither have Mackenzie or Danny. I was so worried—"

"P-p-please, listen to m-me." Carter interrupted. It was then did Emerald hear how shallow and jagged her breathing was and that she was sniffling like she'd been crying or was crying at the moment or both. "Y-y-you have to help us. He's… he's got us locked up in here—I'm so scared. I just want to g-go h-home."

Emerald's blood ran cold. "Who, who has you?" Emerald demanded her voice tight, one hand gripping the phone rigidly, her other hand around the cord.

"Anthony."

**Sorry! I just couldn't help myself; I just love cliff-hangers… as you can tell. I'll try to update tomorrow (because I have an awesome three day weekend!). Hope you enjoyed!**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	22. Twenty Two

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Decisions

Emerald restrained herself from gripping the phone too hard in fear of breaking it. She took deep breaths and told herself to block these feeling off. She needed the clearest of minds in a situation such as this one. She had tried her best to keep her friends safe, and now that they weren't she'd do anything to keep them safe. It'd absolutely kill her if they were hurt or killed because she'd been careless and let someone know her identity.

There was noise on the other phone like it was being moved or taken away. Then Anthony came on.

"Hello, Emerald, it's nice to hear from you." he greeted cordially.

Afraid of anyone overhearing, Emerald quickly closed the door and locked it, before closing the blinds as well. Soon the room was so dark all Emerald could make out were the outlines of desks and chairs, but she didn't turn on the light.

"What have you done with them?" Emerald growled into the phone. "You sick—"

"Ah, ah, ah," Anthony interrupted before a whimper followed by sobbing. "Be careful what you say to me. I have the leverage here." he warned.

"Don't _touch _them! Don't you touch them!" Emerald hissed angrily before composing herself again. Yelling at him wasn't going to get her anywhere. She needed to start making a deal with him. "What do you want?" she asked quietly.

Emerald could practically see Anthony smile. "In front of the Marriott, five minutes. If you're not there or you bring anyone with you, your friends here will die and so will your company. See you then."

Not giving Emerald anytime to speak Anthony hung up. She stood there in silence and darkness for a few seconds. Then, slowly, she hung the phone up and opened the door. At a brisk pace, she exited the office and was heading back to her classroom. She needed to get her skateboard. It'd get her there faster than running or a taxi.

Without hesitating, she walked back into the classroom and started to throw her things in her backpack.

"And just where do you think you're going?" the teacher questioned stopping his lecture.

"Urgent call. I have to go." Emerald explained zipping her back pack up and swinging it over her shoulder. The teacher didn't object as she walked out of the classroom again.

When Emerald got to her locker she grabbed her board and threw her pack into the locker before shoving it shut. Half-way out she passed a classroom and spotted Storm. She froze. Should she tell him what she was doing? But if she did he'd insist on coming and that would only be worse. If she could ever convince him not to come he'd never let her go alone. It was a lose-lose situation. Emerald couldn't risk it. Not when her friends' lives were a stake.

But how was she going to keep it from him to give her enough time to get to the Marriott? The connection would surely tell him some time or another. And she could cut off the connection because that'd only warn him something was wrong.

Emerald let out a small hiss and, like magic, Storm's eyes strayed toward the door locking in on her.

Oops.

Emerald's eyes widened and she panicked and started quickly walking forward. She'd just wasted at least thirty seconds standing there debating what she'd do. Hearing the knob of the door turn, Emerald quickly darted behind some lockers and held her breath, forcing her heart slow.

"I know you're out there, Emerald." he said quietly enough only she could here. Emerald didn't move, didn't say a word. She simply covered her mouth and held her nose shut, even as her lungs screamed for air, and started praying that he'd let it drop and go back to class.

Finally, after another couple of scary seconds, the teacher stepped out.

"Is there a problem out here, Mr. Kallahan?" the teacher asked.

Storm didn't answer at first. "No, it's nothing, sir." he said quietly.

"Then, please, this is important for tomorrow's exam." The teacher gestured for Storm to return to class.

He did without another word and the teacher followed suit.

Emerald finally uncovered her mouth and dashed, board in hand, to the Marriott. She'd just wasted three of her five minutes.

Thankfully she somehow managed to make it to the front of the Marriott with twenty seconds to spare. Emerald looked at her watch and just as the numbers changed a black car pulled up to the curb, right in front of Emerald. If Anthony didn't happen to be an evil Night Worlder he and Carter would be perfect for each other, seeing as they were both punctual.

The car parked at the curb and four vampires stepped out, including Anthony. Two stood behind Emerald like bodyguards, except they were doing the opposite of protecting her.

"Where are they?" Emerald asked as soon as Anthony stepped out.

"Straight to the point, huh?" Anthony asked like nothing was happening, like he wasn't threatening three innocent lives for one that didn't deserve to live.

Emerald glowered at him. "I'm not going anywhere or doing anything until you let me see them. Until you let them go. And they had better not have a single scratch on them, or so help me, you will regret it."

Anthony dropped his charming teenage boy façade and met her glare evenly. Without looking away he said, "Bring 'em out."

The other two vampires walked back to the car, opened the doors and folded the chairs back. Mackenzie, Danny, and Carter stepped out. They all looked frazzled with their faces smudged with dirt. The two vampires lined them side-by-side on the sidewalk and stood between them.

"I'm sorry," Emerald apologized. "I never meant for any of this to happen."

"I should've known you'd be involved in something like this." Danny sneered.

"Don't say that!" Carter exclaimed standing up for her friend. "You guys are so horrible! I thought she was our friend!"

"Yeah, so did I." Mackenzie shot back glaring at Emerald. Then she shot daggers at Carter. "But look what she got us into."

"It's not her fault! She said she didn't want this to happen—"

"But it did, Carter! It did! And we can't ever go back!"

"Why are saying that! That's not fair to her!" Carter took a step forward and the two vampires standing next to them overreacted, reaching forward and taking hold of her.

"Don't you touch her!" Emerald growled lunging toward them. The two behind her however had anticipated this and quickly grabbed her arms. Emerald was about to beat them up but Anthony intervened.

"Guys! Let them go. That's an order." Anthony barked. All four of the vampires let go of Carter and Emerald and stepped back into their places.

Emerald turned toward Anthony.

"You'd better watch it, Winters." she hissed threatening. "You don't know the things I can do. You don't know how I was trained. I can break bones and crush tendons. I could drive your ribs into your lungs. I could rip your trachea right out of your throat. Touch them one more time and you'll find yourself wishing you were dead by the time I'm through with you."

Anthony's jaw worked as he gave Emerald a black look. But he wasn't the first one to talk.

"You disgust me." Danny spat. "You're clearly not the person I thought you were."

"How could you ever say anything like that to anyone?" Mackenzie asked appalled. "It's horrifying. Why would you ever want to learn such a thing? That's not human. You're… soulless."

To Emerald's surprise Carter still stood up for her. "Guys, don't say that!" She had tears in her eyes. "I'm sure that she had her reasons for that kind of… training."

"Looks like theirs some friction between you and your so-called friends, Emerald." Anthony commented smugly.

"Don't listen to any of them Emerald. I-I'm still your friend." Carter said weakly.

Emerald shrugged. "They're right, though." she said, her head down, lifting her hands to examine them. "I'm nothing but a cold-blooded killer. All I do is kill." she whispered. She dropped her hands and looked back over at Carter, Mackenzie and Danny. "You guys need to go now." Danny and Mackenzie left without a word but Carter was more reluctant to go.

"Emerald, I can't… I can't leave you here." Carter whispered as tears spilled from her eyes. She was brave, Emerald had to admit that.

"No. You're out of danger. Just _go_." Emerald ordered.

They stared at each other for a moment before Carter got a determined look in her eyes. She nodded once and ran off down the street. For some reason Emerald didn't feel comforted now that they were away from any immediate danger.

When Carter disappeared around a building, Emerald turned to face Anthony again.

"Let's go." she said.

Anthony smiled and opened the backseat door for her.

"Ladies first," He gestured.

Taking a deep breath, Emerald walked forward and got into the car.

* * *

><p>The last bell had rung and Storm headed out of his English class with a horrible feeling. What had Emerald been doing standing outside his classroom today? Why did she run when he saw her? Why didn't she come out and talk to him when he came out? Storm's stomach sank as he thought of all the possibilities that could've happened that would lead Emerald to act like that. None of them were good.<p>

Storm was just closing his locker when his name was called, frantically and breathlessly. He turned and looked around the crowded hallways, scanning for who could've called his name.

"Storm!" It called again from his right. He locked onto a small girl, pushing through the crowds faster than Storm thought possible. Her fiery, copper curls bounced as she ran and her eyes were wide. Her clothes looked ruffled and worn and her face had smudges of dirt.

Storm stepped forward just as Carter broke through a crowd of freshmen boys and girls and crashed into him, gripping his arms for support.

"You… you have to come!" she gasped out of breath. "You have to… help!" She was also sobbing.

Storm helped her to her feet. "What, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Storm asked frantically looking down at Carter.

"Please, you have… to come." she sobbed gasping for air, barely able to talk.

"Carter, maybe you should sit down and—"

"No! No! There's no time for that!" Carter yelled suddenly finding strength to grab Storm's wrist so tight it cut off his circulation, and jerk him forward, toward the exit. "She needs our help!"

By the time Storm could compose himself and stop Carter they'd already burst through the doors and stumbled down the steps. "Carter, you need to tell me what happened. We can't go running into the darkness. It's dangerous. You need to tell me what's going on." he argued.

"Emerald! They… they took Emerald. It was our fault. They used us as bait. I wanted to stay but she… she wouldn't let me. We have to go help her!" Carter quickly explained.

"No, _I_ need to go help her. You need to go home and rest. See your family. Emerald would kill me if I dragged you back into danger again." Storm told her calmly.

Carter's eyes blazed with fury. "No! _I'm going_. She is my friend. She's been loyal to me. She's been there for me. She's always had my back. She saved my life. I'm not going to let you tell me what to do. I'm going whether she likes it or not."

* * *

><p>"You have visitors." Anthony called, stopping Emerald in her tracks. She'd been pacing every since they'd thrown her in here. It was a relatively small room with cement walls and a small rickety bed frame holding about a five-inch cot. There was a small bathroom which had the same, dull, dank, cement walls.<p>

The door opened and Emerald looked, blinking at the white light filtering through the open door, illuminating the prison she was being kept in.

What did he mean by visitors? Who could it possibly be? Two figures were thrown in, but the light behind them was too bright, and inside was too dim. She couldn't tell who they were.

But after the door slammed closed and Emerald's eyes adjusted her mouth fell open and her eyes widened even more.

"I can't believe you!" Emerald angrily whispered at Storm. Carter had crawled onto the cot and was sleeping now. Emerald and Storm were having a heated discussion on the other side of the room. "You brought her with you! What were you thinking? I didn't give myself up to have her land back here!"

Storm put his hands on Emerald's shoulders. "Emerald, calm down. Just listen, please—" Emerald shook his hands off and started pacing, letting out a frustrated sigh.

"You just don't get it! She is too fragile for this stuff. She won't know what's going on here. How am I supposed to explain this to her? I'm not going to let you wipe her memory. It's just _so_ risky…." Emerald trailed off biting her lip.

"Emerald, you don't give Carter very much credit. She's a lot stronger than you realize. I mean, she's endured three days here. She ran back to school to find me for _you_." Storm explained.

"So? You can't expect her to be able to go through these next few days. Things are going to get messy." Emerald warned. "My father—" Emerald broke off and cringed. "I-I can't let that happen to Carter." she whispered tears filling her eyes. Emerald turned away her stomach tightening into knots, and quickly wiped her tears away.

"He's been biting you again, hasn't he?" Storm asked quietly.

"No, it's fine. I'm fine." Emerald's voice shook.

Storm took a step toward her, grabbing one of her arms and pulling her sleeve up, to reveal several bite marks on her wrist.

"Emerald—"

Emerald jerked her hand out of his grasp and pulled her sleeve back into place. "I'm fine." she repeated. "It's not like I haven't gone through this before."

"Emerald—" Storm tried again.

She spun on him her eyes rimmed red and bloodshot from all the rubbing and tears. "You don't understand! Carter will never be the same after this! It's going to be too much for her! I don't even know how I'm going get out now. You ruined my whole plan, showing up like this." Emerald started pacing and babbling on. "And I can't even believe that you'd purposefully put yourself in danger just to see me. I would've found a way out, or you could've at least thought of a way to get me without getting caught. There's just so much to think about now. I mean, Carter's life for one, and then you and me, and—"

Storm cut Emerald off just as she turned back toward him by pressing his lips against hers. He wrapped his arm around his waist and knotted one of his hands in her silky hair. Her eyes slid closed and she kissed him back, greedily, selfishly enjoying the moment of being with Storm again.

They pulled away, their foreheads pressed against each other.

"Storm," Emerald breathed.

"Hmm,"

"Next time you want to me shut up, just say so." she told him.

Storm opened his eyes and looked at her. Without a word he leaned down for a few more kisses.

"Emerald," Storm murmured in between kisses.

"Hmm," she responded.

Storm stopped to look at her. "Shut up."

Emerald smiled before stretching up on her toes to steal another kiss.

**I know, it's more of a filler-like chapter. I'll update as soon as I can. Hope you enjoyed!**

** .happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	23. Twenty Three

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Fallout

Something was going on. Something was happening. But Emerald couldn't figure out what. There were noises. Small noises. Almost like… almost like…. Emerald racked her brain trying to remember what that noise reminded her of. But her brain was swathed in fog. Cold and dark and damp.

There were more noises but they weren't small like the ones heard previously. Talking? Was it talking? The noise was deep, low, and continuous. The small noises started up again, louder this time, broken yet melodic, like a heartbeat. It suddenly spiked the sound snapping Emerald out of her haze. Her eyes snapped open, but drooped immediately. She could barely keep them open.

Worse still the room was hazy and fractured. Like she was only sensing the things around her but her brain didn't perceive them; wasn't turning them into meaningful objects and sounds.

Something beneath her was cold and uncomfortable. The small noises continued sometimes overrun by louder, stronger noises. The room was dim but she couldn't distinguish any objects' outlines.

Emerald rolled onto her back, her eyebrows furrowing as she tried to get her brain to work properly. Something was wrong. She could just feel the emotions in the air. Someone was in trouble or… or hurt. She needed to help them! But in this state there was no chance she'd be able to even tell where they were in the room.

The sound spiked again. It was like getting a slap to the face for Emerald. She gasped as the situation she was in came crashing down onto her again. Her eyes rolled in her head as she looked around the room again, but this time recognizing the shape of the room, the door to the bathroom, the small cot and two people. One was cowering on the cot in the far corner while the other stood over: a looming, villainous shadow.

The red of the girl's hair stood out against the stark background and Emerald realized it was Carter. She realized the small noises had been whimpering and the spikes had been her screaming. The low bass had been Anthony.

Emerald's heart fluttered in her chest seeing her friend like that. Her muscles tensed getting ready to jump up and pull Anthony away and beat him up, but they weren't responding to the commands her brain was sending to them. Her limbs wouldn't budge, like she was paralyzed. Emerald fought to rid her body of this strange Night World toxin probably flowing through her veins right now, mixing with her blood.

Carter was in trouble. She needed to be helped immediately!

Carter let out a yelp.

"Anthony," Emerald managed to mumble.

"No, Emerald… I-I'm fine." Carter said, though her voice shook and tears stained her cheeks.

Emerald took a breath. "No," she said weakly. "Don't… listen to her, Anthony. She's too scared. You wouldn't have… any fun." Emerald coaxed.

Anthony stepped back from the cot and started toward Emerald.

"No! No, don't do this! Really, I-I'm _fine_." Carter tried.

Emerald forced her head to turn a faction of an inch. She met Anthony's eyes.

"You know you want to." she whispered. Anthony was at her side, kneeling over her in an instant. Emerald relaxed slightly now knowing her friend was out of danger, for now at least.

Anthony smiled and chuckled.

"You make a convincing argument." he told her pointedly, reaching out to stroke her cheek.

Emerald turned her head back toward the ceiling. "Just get it over with and leave my friend alone." she whispered.

Anthony reached forward slipping one arm underneath her waist and lifting her off the floor, then he gently grabbed some of her hair and pulled her head back, arching her neck. It was different. The feeling was different. She'd never had a vampire feed off her like this before. Not even when she was with her father and his buddies.

It felt wrong. Emerald didn't like it. All her instincts were screaming at her do something, but even if she could move her body, she wouldn't. Not if it kept Carter safe.

Not if it kept Carter from getting bitten, because after that first bite; the first time you see the person you thought was normal transform into some demonic monster from horror movies; the first time you see the liquid silver ignite their eyes; the first time you see their long, deadly-sharp fangs; the first time you connect with something so monstrous, so heartless, soulless; the first time you feel the life literally being sucked from your body… nothing is ever the same after that.

Just as Anthony's canines sunk into the soft flesh of her neck, Emerald realized two things: How did she not know that Anthony was a vampire and the other, that Storm was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

><p>"What's your father like?" Carter asked simply out of curiosity.<p>

Ever since Storm and Carter's arrival, they'd added two more cots which were welded to the floor, as some kind of precaution Emerald supposed. Carter was sitting on one perpendicular to the one Emerald and Storm were sitting on.

"He's arrogant and immature. He lacks any taste or refinement. He's a sadistic, egotistic thing that has the mentality of an eighteen-year-old and runs away from responsibility and commitment." Emerald stated simply and monotoned.

The vaulted door swung open with a clang making Carter and Storm jump slightly. Emerald merely turned to look over her shoulder as if she knew he was going to come in at the exact moment.

"I take real offense to that." her father's voice came as he stepped in with Anthony and some his other goons. The door closed behind them.

"You should." Emerald responded standing up to meet them, her arms crossed tightly over her chest.

"Now, young lady, that is no way to talk to your father." Jonathan reprimanded. It was horrible how much Emerald and Jonathan looked alike. Of course, Emerald had inherited all her mother's looks (although this man did have black hair as Trinity and Emerald), but Storm could blatantly see this man was her father. The way he stood with superiority, his head lifted high, the way his eyes raked across the room, freezing everything they saw. Emerald stood exactly like that, her eyes did exactly that when she got angry or let the hunter inside her come out.

"I've been over this with Trinity before." Emerald told him meeting Jonathan's eyes, which—Storm hated to admit—looked exactly like Emeralds, right down the sapphire ring on the outside and changing of colors. "I don't see a father, I see a poor excuse of a man who ran away from commitment to join the Night World."

"Emerald," Storm warned quietly.

Anthony stepped forward. "No, it's good to talk about our issues. To clear the air and say what we feel. Isn't that right, Emerald?" he asked in a mocking tone with a demeaning smile.

Emerald didn't answer as he walked past her. She turned following his every move. He was going toward Carter whose eyes were wide and stricken. Her hands were balled up into fists and her jaw taut. As Anthony approached she backed up until she hit the wall.

Emerald lunged toward him, ready to stop him, but Jonathan came up and put a hand on the base of her throat, grabbing one of her arms as well.

"I don't think so," Jonathan sang smugly.

Storm growled as two other of Jonathan's pawns wrestled him down, stabbing him a couple times in the process.

Emerald glowered at her father. "What do you want?" she hissed. "I've given you everything I can. It's not fair to them."

Jonathan smiled. "Haven't you heard? Life isn't fair, sweetie." he retorted.

Carter whimpered as Anthony boxed her in.

"You know," he was saying, "I really didn't actually want to break up with you." He reached up to stroke her cheek. "I think you're a wonderful girl." he whispered.

Carter shook her head. "You're a monster! You d-disgust me." she stuttered bravely.

Anthony grabbed a fistful of Carter's copper curls and she yelped, tears spilling from her eyes.

Emerald had had enough. With the hand that wasn't being held back she threw her fist out hitting Jonathan square in the jaw, twisting her hips and using that energy to put more force behind the punch.

Jonathan fell to the ground and Emerald ran forward forcing her way between Carter and Anthony. His eyes glowed silver, his fangs elongated and ready to pierce flesh.

"Move it," Anthony snarled bringing his hand up, preparing to strike.

"Wait," Jonathan's voice commanded stopping Anthony mid-swing. Anthony glared down at Emerald before stepping back his face molding back into the dashing soccer player from school.

Jonathan had stood up, his lip was bleeding. He chuckled walking up to Emerald.

"That was quite a punch there," he commented wiping away the blood. "Come on, show me what you've got." He stepped back and waved her forward.

Emerald looked at Jonathan warily.

"Go ahead, hit me with your best shot."

Emerald stepped forward and threw two punches quick as lightning. Jonathan easily dodged them. She glared at her father who wore a smirk. She tried a roundhouse kick to the head but Jonathan ducked. Emerald quickly repositioned herself and tried to land a kick to his chest, but he jumped back.

She let out a frustrated growl before lunging forward her arm outstretched, trying to get at least one hit. Jonathan sidestepped and grabbed her wrist, pulling her forward.

"You're mother was weakling. Watching you. Spying on you and she still couldn't beat you in a fight." Jonathan scoffed in Emerald's ear right before ramming his knee into the sensitive spot right beneath the sternum, knocking all the breath from her lungs. Jonathan let go of her wrist and she struggled to catch her breath and not collapse. That had been painful. Really, _really_ painful.

Emerald called him a name when she realized he had zapped her with his telepathic Power when his knee had made contact. That was why it'd been so much more painful than she was used to.

"I haven't seen you once since you escaped and I can easily beat you." Jonathan gloated, backhanding and zapping Emerald, who fell to the floor noisily.

"Emerald!" Carter and Storm shouted simultaneously.

"I'm all right." Emerald mumbled attempting to stand up again. Jonathan disagreed however, and backhanded her once more. Emerald let out a yelp and rolled onto her back.

Jonathan's eyes grew wider with hunger. A demonic smile appeared on his face. He straddled her waist and leaned down, his face stopping inches from hers.

"You fight like a girl." Jonathan whispered.

"I am a girl." Emerald groaned. "What do you want from me?"

"All in good time, my dearest daughter. All in good time." Jonathan answered bringing his head down and swiftly sinking his canines into Emerald's neck. Emerald's eyes shut tightly as she tried to fight the connection that was made every time she was bitten. It didn't seem right. Why did vampires have to connect with anyone they bit? How horrible that would be, seeing the mind, feeling the mind of your attacker surrounding you before you died.

Even with a sound mind and strong soul, Emerald couldn't fight the power pulsing in her father. Within moments her mind was engulfed into his. It was dark and cold. Desolate and barren. It sucked the life right out of her.

_I __swear __it,_ Emerald thought pulling away from him as much as she could. Trying not to let any part of him become a permanent part of her. _I __swear __that __one __of __these __days __that __you __will __pay __for __what __you __did __to __me. __That __you__'__ll __die __at _my _hand._

Jonathan chuckled. _Ladies __first, _he threw back.

When Jonathan pulled back, Emerald realized that she felt breathless and tired, lethargic.

"You… took too… much." she accused breathlessly.

Jonathan merely smiled and laughed as he pulled up the sleeve of his shirt. "I know." he finally said before biting his own wrist. The blood flowed. Emerald realized what he was doing and pressed her lips together, turning her head away. "Now don't be that way. It doesn't hurt. It doesn't taste bad." Emerald refused to give in. "You're saying you'd rather die than be turned into a vampire? Tsk, tsk," Jonathan shook his head disapprovingly. "I'm disappointed. What about Storm? How would he feel if you died, hm?"

"He's right, Emerald." Storm said quietly. Emerald felt like the air had just been sucked right out from her lungs. No, it couldn't have been true, Storm hadn't just said that. He hadn't just _agreed_ with her father!

"I said no." Emerald repeated her voice shaking.

"Emerald—" Storm started to object.

"Shut him up!" Jonathan snarled standing up. "If she wants to die, than let her die. It's time to go. We have other business to attend to."

He walked out followed by Anthony and the two other vampires. The door slammed shut echoing through the room. Carter was curled up in a ball on one of the cots, sleeping.

Storm limped up to Emerald who had managed to push herself into a sitting position.

"Don't talk to me." Emerald told him bitterly as he came closer.

"Emerald, please, just listen to me, okay?" Storm tried to reason. She turned away from him. He pulled her into his lap. She tried to push him away but Jonathan had taken so much blood she barely had any strength left. Storm looked down at her with soft, loving eyes. "I know you don't want to be a vampire," he started. "But imagining life without you is… unbearable." Storm's throat tightened. "I'd _never_ be able to live without you. You… you are everything to me now." Tears started to form in his eyes and his voice became a whisper. "If I were to lose you… I just—I just don't know what I'd do."

"But… I can't—I don't," Emerald whispered weakly, her eyes almost closing fully.

Storm tightened his arms around her. "I _promise_, I will do everything in my power to prevent you from becoming a vampire. But your father took a lot of your blood and _you __will __die_. Just for now, to heal you, drink from me."

Emerald looked up at him reading all the emotions passing through Storm's sparkling blue eyes.

"Okay," she finally said.

Storm relaxed and pulled the collar of his shirt back with one of his free hands before making a relatively long cut at the base of his throat. Then he carefully guided Emerald to his open cut. Their minds instantly intertwined and Emerald became hyperaware of Storm's arms embracing her, holding her to him. Storm became hyperaware of one of Emerald's hands resting on his neck, the other on his shoulder; her hair tickling his neck; her warm, soft lips pressed up against the base of his throat.

_I __love __you._ Emerald told him.

_As __I __love __you._ Storm replied.

* * *

><p>"You didn't have to do that, Emerald!" Carter shouted angrily. "I was fine!"<p>

Emerald shook her head. "No, you were not fine. You were scared. And that's okay—"

"I wasn't scared! _Stop __saying __that!_ Why do you always treat me like a child? I can stand up for myself!" Carter interrupted.

"You're not a child. I never said that. But you are not strong enough to deal with the mental torture of being bitten." Emerald tried to explain.

"Oh, so now I'm weak." Carter crossed her arms and glared at her friend. "I would like to tell you that I handled learning about the Night World _just __fine_, thank you." she said stiffly.

"Learning about it and actually experiencing it are two totally different things. I'm not going to let you go through that. _No __one_ should ever go through that." Emerald tried to reason.

"But I'm not a little kid! I'm not weak! I'm stronger than you give me credit for! I had Anthony covered. I had lured him away from you in the first place." Carter stumbled. "I-I… I'll admit: I did get scared seeing his… true form. But I was doing it for you!" she finished quickly so Emerald couldn't comment. "I was being brave to keep you safe. You don't always have to take the hits."

"You don't understand!" Emerald burst her eyes filling with tears. "I only take all the hits because I don't want you getting hurt. If you got hurt… if you were killed because of me—because of the life _I_ chose—I would never be able to forgive myself."

"You can't keep taking all this upon yourself, Emerald! You are going to kill yourself if you keep this up."

"As long as you're safe—" Emerald started quietly.

"Stop staying that! Sometimes it's good to be selfish and let other people take the fall."

"You just don't get it do you?" Emerald asked. Before Carter could respond, she took a step back and pulled her shirt off. She balled up into one hand and pulled all her hair over one shoulder before turning around to show Carter the long, jagged scars running down her back. "You don't want this." Emerald explained quietly, looking over her shoulder through her peripherals at Carter.

Carter looked pale, one hand covering her mouth, the other half-way outstretched toward Emerald, like she wanted to touch the scars, make sure they were real.

"Oh God," Carter whispered. "What _happened_?"

Emerald turned back to face Carter and pointed to the door. "_They_ did. My _father_ did. I'm not going to let that happen to you. You are too innocent for this. Too pure for this. I'm not going to let them take that away from you."

The door sounded, Emerald and Carter shied away from the white light, shielding their sensitive eyes. (Things would've been more awkward because Emerald was only her bra, but in a situation like this, nothing felt awkward anymore.) Storm was thrown in and the door was pulled closed again, leaving them in darkness. Emerald's eyes adjusted quickly. She saw Storm's state and cussed before putting her shirt back on and rushing over to him.

He was half-conscious, bloodied, bruised, cut, possibly stabbed. From what Emerald could tell his cheek and lip were busted open and he had a black eye.

Without a word Emerald quickly went over to the cot, took the sheet and ripped a long ribbon off.

"Go get that wet with cold water, please." she asked Carter, handing the ribbon to her. Carter nodded and headed into the bathroom. Emerald turned back to Storm.

"Can you stand? No broken bones or anything." Emerald questioned.

"Yes, no," Storm croaked, answering both questions.

Emerald rolled her eyes but quickly threw one of his arms over her shoulders and pulled him to his feet.

"Okay, that hurt." Storm complained as they stumbled over to one of the cots. Emerald unraveled his arm from her shoulders and set him down on the bed as gently as she could. Carter came out then with the wet cloth. After handing it over to Emerald she sat down at the foot of the bed. Emerald was concerned that she had scarred Carter more than Anthony would, but she couldn't deal with that. Not now. It'd have to wait (as horrible as that sounded).

"Ow, ow, ow, that hurts." Storm pulled away with every "ow", seemingly more awake now.

"Hold still, I need to clean this." Emerald hissed frustrated.

"It'll heal by itself. I'm fine. I'm not susceptible to any kind of human disease, remember? So you don't have to clean my wounds. Besides my open lip has already healed." Storm argued gently, reaching up to push Emerald's hand down and away from his face.

"Wimp," Carter called from her spot at the foot of the bed. This comforted Emerald a little. At least now she was talking. She was even joking.

Storm rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. "I wish people would stop calling me that." he groaned.

"We wouldn't call you a wimp if you just stoped acting like wimp, wimp." Emerald told him before briskly standing up and going into the bathroom to throw away the folded up ribbon of the bed sheet.

Emerald threw the cloth into a small bin that looked like it hadn't been used in years. She turned to exit but almost crashed into Storm. She jumped and veered back.

"I-I didn't see you there." she mumbled.

Storm didn't say anything; instead he stepped in, closing the door as he did so, before promptly crushing his lips to Emerald's. She didn't respond at first because she was so shocked by his gesture. Now really wasn't the time to make out in the bathroom. But Emerald melted under his touch, her lips molding perfectly with his. Carter's words rung in her head, _Some times __it__'__s __good __to __be __selfish_.

So in that moment she was selfish. She pretended like they weren't being held by her cruel father. She pretended that her friend and dearest loved one wasn't in any mortal danger. She pretended that she had never killed in her entire life, that she had lived a normal life as a girl growing up with a pair of loving parents and had met this boy who was part of the Night World, something she'd never heard of before until he came along.

Storm walked back, pushing Emerald up against the wall, one of his hands on her waist, the other in her hair. The kiss became heated, farther than Emerald had thought they'd gone before. It gave her this odd feeling. Butterflies filled her stomach causing millions of tornados all over the country.

However, when Storm slipped his hand underneath her shirt she felt it had gone a little far. She wasn't ready for… _that_, and, besides, now was _not_ the time.

Emerald pulled back and looked up at Storm putting one of her hands over his, stopping him from making any more advances.

"Storm," she warned.

His eyes burned into hers. Emerald's breath caught, the hand holding Storm's dropped limply to her side.

Storm's hand moved upward, but the look in his eyes didn't say anything like that. Emerald's confusion cleared when he gently touched the scar on her back and traced it with the tips of his fingers.

Emerald turned her head away ashamed. "You knew." It wasn't an accusation, just more of a statement.

"I got a glimpse when I was thrown in." Storm murmured removing his hand and letting it rest at his side. "Why didn't you tell me about it?"

"It's not important!" Emerald exclaimed blinking, tears rolling down her face as a result. "It didn't matter! It _doesn__'__t_ matter."

Storm wiped away Emerald's tears and rested his forehead against hers. "Shh, shh," he whispered comfortingly. "It's okay, it's all right. I'm sorry if I upset you—"

"No, no, it's not your fault. It's just—" Emerald broke off and a sob escaped her lips. "It's just—" She tried again, but all that emotion was washing over her, drowning out anything else. She couldn't control her amount of tears and she couldn't keep back the small wails that escaped her lips. "Just hold me." she cried, breaking down into full blown, body-racking sobs.

Storm pulled her into him and held her tightly as her tears stained his shirt. He rubbed her back comfortingly, and softly spoke comforting words to her.

**Okay, there it is! I hope you enjoyed! I'll try to update tomorrow.**

**.happiness.**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	24. Twenty Four

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Retaliation

"Are you okay?" Storm asked quietly sitting up on his cot. He watched Emerald pace back and forth, waiting quietly for her answer.

"No." she finally answered curtly before continuing her pacing. Storm sighed and stood up, walking over to her. "I'm thinking." she elaborated.

"About…?" Storm prodded.

"We need to get out." Emerald said flatly, still pacing, not meeting his gaze. "I'm trying to think of a way to get out."

"What if he's got this place bugged?" Storm whispered.

"Have you noticed any other people from the Night World working for Jonathan?" Emerald asked, totally ignoring Storm.

"Emerald, I really think—" Storm tried, nervously looking at the corners of the room.

Emerald stopped her pacing for a moment to glare at him. "Just answer the question." she snapped.

"Uh, yeah, the two that attacked me yesterday were shapeshifters, why is that important?" Storm answered quickly before asking his own question.

"Do you think they're all shapeshifters? What's the possibility that he only uses shapeshifters and werewolves?" Emerald continued still ignoring Storm. "I mean aside from the fact that he used vampires when he'd kidnapped me…. I haven't seen any since. Which would make sense because—"

"Emerald!" Storm hissed, stepping in front of her to stop her pacing. "We can't—"

Before Storm could finish his sentence, the door sounded. White light flooded through and a figure was shoved inside. Storm and Emerald froze watching the door. It closed again. Emerald's eyes adjusted quickly as she analyzed the situation. Storm was at her side, just as tense.

The figure stood up unsteadily. This person was wearing a dark blue button down, with the sleeves rolled up, black slacks, and black Armani tennis shoes.

"Male." Emerald observed.

"Nineteen, maybe twenty." Storm said quietly.

"Shapeshifter." They said in sync.

"One of theirs turned?" Storm asked.

Emerald narrowed her eyes. "Doesn't look like it." She took a step forward, arms crossed. "Who are you?" she asked.

The figure stepped forward, he looked disgruntled and annoyed, but stood tall and entitled.

"Sky," he answered. "Sky Masterson." He eyed Storm and Emerald. "Vampire." he acknowledged slightly distastefully, giving Storm a nod.

"Shifter." Storm replied just as cold.

Sky turned attention to Emerald. "And… human?" he asked, his eyebrows quirking up a fraction of an inch.

Emerald was about to answer when Carter's groggy voice sounded.

"What's going on? Is everything okay?" she asked, rubbing her eyes and hopping off the bed.

Emerald turned toward Carter, stopping her from getting any closer to Sky. Because who knew why he was here.

"Everything's fine," Emerald assured Carter quietly.

"Another human?" Sky exclaimed sauntering forward, but not before giving Storm a look.

Emerald turned to face Sky. "Nice to meet you, I'm the Vigilante." she said in a warning tone.

Sky took an involuntary step back, his jaw tightening.

"I mean no harm." Sky said in a quiet voice. "I was looking for a place to stay, I came across here, they invited me in and then threw me into this place." he explained.

"And how do I know you're not lying, Mr. Armani Shoes." Emerald asked slowly. "Why would someone like you be looking for a place to stay?"

Sky pursed his lips. "I ran away." he muttered.

"Aren't you a little old to be running away?" Storm asked for Emerald.

Sky's eyes narrowed and he looked away, crossing his arms over his chest indignantly. "Too much responsibility. I didn't like it. I never had any time to myself. It was so frustrating." He shrugged. "So I ran off. I don't see what the big deal is."

"The big deal is: you're being totally irresponsible." Carter said pushing past Emerald.

Emerald was about to object, but Storm touched her arm to stop her. She looked at him, but he had a knowing smile. Confused, Emerald turned back to Carter and Sky.

"I was not being irresponsible!" Sky objected his chest puffing out.

"Uh, yeah, you were. And immature. You need to grow up. You're, what, nineteen? You're an adult now, so act like one!"

Sky deflated but he was glaring at Carter. Emerald tensed ready to tackle him if he moved an inch toward Carter, but then the anger died from his fire blue spinel colored eyes and a smile formed on his lips.

"No one's ever talked to me like that before." he stated a little shocked, but underneath almost giddy. It was baffling to Emerald and Storm. Why was he giddy about being told off, especially by a mere mortal in a shapeshifters eyes. "I kind of like it."

Carter jerked back the sparks in her eyes extinguishing, not expecting that either. Her eyebrows knitted together. "Who _are_ you?" she asked.

"I'm the cousin of Galen Drache." Sky said. "Though, I'm not so sure that means much to you." he added seeing the confused look on Carter's face.

Emerald came forward again looking at him disbelievingly. "Why haven't I ever heard of you? If your claim of being the cousin of _the_ Galen Drache—the heir of the First House of Drache, the most powerful shapeshifter family in the Night World—is really true." she asked.

Sky rolled his eyes. "I know what the First House of Drache is, thank you very much."

"Well?" Emerald prodded still not believing a single word out of his mouth.

"My family likes to keep out of the limelight. I have lived a very sheltered life. But I still have my duties to perform with my family being related to the First House of Drache and all." Sky explained looking at Emerald distastefully.

"Don't you go giving me that look," Emerald snapped.

"I still don't think that's an excuse to run away." Carter interrupted before a fight could break out between Sky and Emerald. "I'm Carter, by the way." she said smiling and holding out her hand.

Sky took it and kissed the top of her hand, like they did in those old movies. Something passed between them and Sky smiled, straightening up, but not letting go of Carter's hand. Carter blushed and bit her lip, the embers in her eyes blazing. Behind Emerald, Storm snickered.

Her head whipped around and she glared at him through narrowed eyes. He knew something she was totally missing. She looked back at Carter and Sky who were still staring at each other, looking totally mesmerized.

"Oh, no!" Emerald exclaimed, realizing what was going on and feeling embarrassed and stupid because she probably looked like that when she met Storm. Emerald got between the two, breaking the connection. "You guys _can__'__t_ be soulmates!"

Carter looked over at Emerald with dreamy eyes. "Soulmates?" she repeated blinking slowly.

Sky chuckled. "Looks like you're stuck with me!"

Emerald's eyes narrowed and she turned toward him, poking him in the chest. "I don't like you." she told him flat out. "You're arrogant and entitled and bigheaded." With every word she poked Sky in the chest. "You hurt Carter in any way, shape, or form and you'll regret it. So you'd better _watch__it_, buster."

Sky's hands were held up in surrender. "She's my soulmate. How could I ever hurt her?"

Emerald turned away and looked at Storm.

"Relationships aren't perfect." she stated quietly, still looking at Storm. Then she dropped her head and looked down at the floor. "Even for soulmates." The tone of her voice struck a cord with Sky.

"Okay," he said. Emerald's head snapped up, meeting his gaze. "I promise I won't hurt her."

"You'd better not." Emerald muttered. She quickly composed herself. "We need to get out of here." Emerald repeated looking at Storm.

"Emerald I don't want to risk it," Storm replied saying what he was going to say earlier before Sky had been thrown in. "How do you know they're not listening right now? I think we should talk about it later, or—"

"No," Emerald cut him off, walking up to him. "I need to end this soon, or he'll get what he wants. I'm sure of it. Even if he did have the room bugged, it wouldn't matter. There's not going to be a later, because he'd always be able to hear what we're talking about." she reasoned. "He couldn't be listening…."

"How can you be so sure?" Storm questioned.

"You need to just trust me on this." Emerald lowered her voice, hating that they were becoming the complications of a soulmate relationship showcase for Sky.

"I'm only thinking about our safety." he responded gently.

"So am I. And I believe that we'd be safer getting out of here than being kept prisoner. Sooner or later Jonathan is going to get tired of playing these games and he's going to kill you guys before getting what he wants from me." Emerald tried to explain.

"Emerald—" Storm tried.

"Where's the Reaper?" she asked suddenly. "Because I need him right now."

Storm looked away. "He died when Tasha did." he murmured.

"No, he didn't," Emerald disagreed. "He was a part of you and always will be. You're just going to have to accept that."

Storm cringed. "But did you see the look on her face when she killed that vampire? It was horrible. It made me sick that I ever associated myself with that kind of life."

"Storm, you need to be with me on this or it's not going to work." Emerald told him. Storm glared down at Emerald and Emerald glared evenly back. "If you're not going to help me, then don't get in my way." she finally decided, walking past him, to begin her pacing again. For some reason it'd always helped her think before.

But as she turned she came face to face with Storm.

"You want him," Storm said grabbing the base of Emerald's neck and pushing her against the wall. It wasn't rough, but it wasn't light either. "You got him."

Emerald smiled and reached up to put her hand over the one holding her neck. "Good." she said, pleased, before jerking her hand back hearing the small _pop!_ Storm let her neck go and she walked passed him as he hissed, "Dammit, you dislocated my thumb."

There was another small pop as Storm put his thumb back into place.

"You grabbed my neck. I didn't like it." Emerald put it simply.

"Well you asked for the Reaper. Here he is." Storm exclaimed.

Emerald turned to face him. "I didn't know he was such a jerk."

"You guys have such a weird relationship." Sky commented making Storm and Emerald both turn to look at him. "I thought you were soulmates, but—"

"We are," Storm and Emerald stopped him simultaneously. "Now," Emerald continued looking back at Storm. "Are you going to help me?"

* * *

><p>The door opened loudly and five Night Worlders stepped in. Three were shapeshifters, the other two were werewolves. Just as Emerald had suspected.<p>

It was almost like Jonathan wanted them to escape.

He wouldn't… would he? This wasn't some sort of big psychological plan of his? Was he smarter than Emerald gave him credit for?

Probably. Still, it didn't make sense that he'd keep them locked up for days on end just to play some psychological game with them. And why them? Why Storm? Carter? Sky, especially. Why not just her?

Emerald broke off her thoughts and pushed them back for a moment. As of now she needed to worry about getting out of here.

One of the shapeshifters, Evan, stepped forward with three tin trays balanced on top of each other in one hand. He threw two of the trays down on the floor at Sky and Carter's feet.

Emerald stood.

"Nice." she commented glancing over at the mess on the floor.

Evan shrugged. "I'm feeling generous today."

Emerald pursed her lips and tried not to smile. "And, what, not strong enough to handle the four of us by yourself?" she mocked looking at the four behind him.

"Emerald, what are you doing?" Storm hissed. She hadn't exactly told them _this_ part of the plan. She ignored him.

Evan's eyes blazed. "What are you saying?" he growled.

Emerald finally let herself smile. "I think you know exactly what I mean. Why all the guards? Afraid you'll get your butt kicked?"

"Emerald, I think you should stop now." Sky whispered quickly.

The hand resting at Evan's side fisted. "It's a little too late for that now." he said through clenched teeth, looking momentarily at Sky. His eyes strayed back to Emerald. "You have no idea what I'm capable of." he growled darkly.

"So what's with all the back-up?" Emerald continued still ignoring Sky and Storm's warnings. "I mean, it's not like you couldn't take us on. All you have to do is threaten one of us and all of us will back down. Don't you know? It's, like, bad guy one-oh-one. Take one hostage and the others will abide if you threaten them right."

Evan's fist twitched and Emerald braced herself, forcing her body to not respond when his fist came at her.

_Incoming,_ Emerald thought as Evan's fist flew out, hitting her clear across the cheek. Emerald hit the ground for dramatic effect. She heard Storm jump up.

"I'm fine," she quickly assured him before he could do something stupid. She brushed some hair out of her face just as Evan dropped her tray of food face down, so that the food went spilling all over the floor. She glared up at him.

"Enjoy," he said smirking before turning and exiting with the four others.

As soon as the door closed Emerald stood and went to sit over on one of the cots nearest to her. The bait was set; hopefully Evan's ego had been bruised enough that he'd say something to Jonathan.

Storm came to sit next to her.

"That was really stupid." he told her.

She smiled at him. "I know. But I had to—"

Storm sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. "You do too much. We're all grown adults here, we can take ourselves, you know."

"I know." Emerald repeated quietly thinking back to what Carter had told her.

"You could've at least told us about that." Carter chimed in, apparently remembering that as well and cutting Emerald some slack.

"You wouldn't have let me go through with it."

"Of course not," the three of them said in sync.

There was a moment of silence as Emerald sulked at the edge of the cot she was sitting on before Carter walked up to her, holding her half-eaten tray of food out for Emerald.

"Oh, no, thank you. You need to eat more than I do." Emerald told her quietly.

Carter sighed. "I'm not offering it to you." she said setting the tray down in Emerald's lap. "No give backs." She went to sit down, next to Sky again.

Emerald sighed and looked down at the food. It had a disconcerting gray color, like they'd gotten it from the school cafeteria. How Carter or Sky had managed to eat any of that was beyond Emerald.

"She's right. You should eat." Storm coaxed softly, resting a hand on her knee.

"How are you holding up?" Emerald asked looking at him.

"Nothing I can't handle." he responded stiffly. "And before you say anything, I'm going to refuse your offer." Emerald opened her mouth but Storm continued. "I'm just a little uncomfortable right now. I can manage."

"Yeah, but how long will that last?"

Storm shook his head a small smile on his perfect lips. "You should eat something, at least." he murmured standing up and kissing her temple before going to sit down on his own cot.

Emerald sighed again and looked down disgustedly at the tray full of gray-ish slop.

* * *

><p>"Well, look who's back," Emerald exclaimed standing up and smiling at Evan. Her eyes briefly flickering behind him, making sure no one was guarding the door.<p>

"Nice bruise," he shot back.

"So, tell me something," she said. "What do you shift into, because I've been _dying_ to know?"

Evan glared at Emerald for a moment before he dropped the trays in his hand, and drew back his other, winding up to throw a punch. Before he could, however, Emerald's own hand lashed out wrapping around Evan's neck. Evan's knees buckled and his punch missed completely, before he grasped at Emerald's wrist because of the painful discomfort she was putting on him.

"The hold I have you in right now is called a lateral vascular hold." Emerald told him, as he slowly sunk to the ground, trying to get oxygen to his lungs. "The uncomfortable feeling you have is due to the fact that my forefinger and thumb restricting your airways and cutting off the oxygen to your brain." Emerald continued tightening her grip. Evan's hand pulled weakly at her wrist. "You should pass out right… about… now."

Evan's eyes rolled back into his head and his hands went slack. He became deadweight, so Emerald let go of his neck. He hit the floor with a thump.

"Let's go, before he wakes up." she instructed searching him for any sort of a weapon. All she found was a small hunting knife, no wood. But it'd have to do. She stepped over Evan and started toward the door.

No one followed.

She turned. "What are you guys waiting for?" she questioned. "We need to go before they realize something's wrong."

Sky, keeping his eyes on Emerald, turned his head slightly toward Storm. "Dude, your girlfriend scares me."

"You'll have worse things to worry about if you don't get a move on!" Emerald hissed.

* * *

><p>It wasn't that hard at first, Carter thought. They met a few of Jonathan's workers, if you will, and she or Storm beat them up pretty easily. They had weapons on them, but only silver, no wood, just like Evan. Figures.<p>

Though, this house was some kind of mansion. It was huge, and it felt like they were just wandering aimlessly.

Up one staircase that led them out of the basement, then down one hallways, through another hallway, left turn down another hallway. A shortcut through what looked like a living room, right turn down yet another hallway. It was like some kind of maze house.

But they came across the kitchen of the house and Emerald absolutely ripped the dining table apart, giving Carter a short, jagged makeshift stake. It felt odd in her hand. She had never held a weapon before and she really wasn't the violent type.

Unfortunately for Carter, today was her unlucky day. They were coming around a corner when she was grabbed by someone. Her mouth was instantly covered and whoever had grabbed her was strong. She struggled, but they were meager and weak compared to this person's hold on her.

Quickly thinking, Carter shoved the small stake into her pocket, ignoring how it easily ripped through the thin fabric and scratched her thigh, as long as it was hidden from sight….

She was dragged into another one of the many rooms. It was a bedroom with a large king sized bed, flat screen, two bedside tables, a fireplace underneath the flat screen. The room had a skylight that took up half of the ceilings space.

Her assailant let go and she spun around ready to scream but all the words caught in her throat when she met gorgeous zircon blue eyes.

"What do you want from me?" she asked, tears welling up in her eyes. Strangely, though, she no longer had any residual love for him like she did before Sky came along.

"I didn't want to ever break up with you, Carter," Anthony told her, looking sincere. He took a step toward her but she stepped back, looking at him cautiously. "I really didn't. I swear."

Carter didn't believe him one bit. What had happened to that cruel, vampire Anthony that had mocked her about their relationship not only a day ago?

"You don't believe me." Anthony stated in a whisper.

"Of course I don't!" Carter screamed. "You _used_ me! You don't love me! You never loved me. Let me go!" She did something rash then, she ran at him, trying to push past him and maybe get out, but Anthony was faster and stronger.

He grabbed her around the waist as she screamed and shouted and cried and struggled. She finally stopped to catch her breath.

"What do you want from me?" she sobbed wrenching out of Anthony's slackened grip and turning to face him again.

Anthony didn't say a word, instead he started toward her until he'd backed her up into the wall. He put his hands on either side of the wall, barricading her in.

"I do, you have to believe me," Anthony whispered. "I did love you. I _do_ love you, Carter. You're sweet and kind and innocent. And I'm sure you'll enjoy being together again. Remember those times? We laughed at the freshmen girls trying to get dates. We watched cheesy romance movies." He leaned in close. Carter froze. "Our first kiss." His lips brushed hers, but chills didn't run down her spine, her heart didn't start racing, she didn't feel lightheaded.

All love for Anthony was completely gone.

She needed a way to distract him, though. She needed to get out and find Sky and Emerald and Storm.

"You're right," she lied, tears streaming down her face. "I-I… do still love you." she whispered. "Kiss me." So, he did. And she kissed him back, but as Anthony was occupied she reached into her pocket and pulled out her stake.

She'd never done this before, so she didn't really know where to aim. It was obviously the heart, but finding the place was harder than it looked, not to mention running it through the bone and tissue that was in front of it. She didn't think she had the strength.

But then she thought of Sky again.

Soulmates.

She actually had a soulmate! It was such an amazing feeling. And that in and of itself, gave her the strength she needed to shove the stake through Anthony's heart.

Anthony stumbled back, his mouth agape, his eyes wide.

"Wh-why?" he choked sinking to the ground.

"I loved you, Anthony." Carter said. "I really did." She shook her head. "But you're too late," she whispered as the light from Anthony's eyes faded and his body slumped to the floor, lifeless. Still, Carter continued to speak as if he were still alive. "Someone else has already stolen my heart."

**Okay, so I totally wanted to leave it on a really awesome cliffy, but I guess it's not meant to be. I know it's been a while but I've had a horrible writers block, so I apologize for that.**

**I hope you enjoyed and I'll try to update as soon as I can.**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	25. Twenty Five

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Insidious

Storm quickly turned a corner and almost crashed into Emerald. They both veered back but when Storm comprehended that it was Emerald, he pulled her into a tight hug.

"I was so worried." he exclaimed. He pulled back to look at her. "Are you all right? Have you seen Carter or Sky?"

"I'm fine," she assured her. "And no, I'm really worried. I feel horrible." Emerald mumbled, her stomach in a knot. "This is all my fault."

"Yeah, it kind of is." Storm said in a serious tone.

Emerald slapped his arm and Storm chuckled. "Come on, we seriously need to find them. I just hope they're both okay." She bit her lip and started down the hallway Storm had just come. Storm followed, not really given a choice.

They turned down a couple more hallways and as they passed a door in one hallway a flash of orange and black broke through the door, the wood cracking loudly as the animal broke the hinges and the door smashed to the floor.

The orange and black blur hit Storm and they crashed to the floor. Emerald's heart jumped in her chest and she lunged forward, toward Storm and the huge tiger with its paws currently resting on Storm's shoulders. Its tail swished and it was in mid-growl before stopping abruptly.

There was a moment of silence. The tiger's tail swished, but less violently now. Then, slowly, shaking its head, the tiger backed off of Storm. Emerald went to his side.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt? What can I do?" she asked frantically, kneeling next to him.

Storm was glassy-eyed and he was staring at the ceiling.

"Can't speak." Storm finally choked, saying his words almost separately from each other. "Bones mending. Really painful."

Emerald let out a breath and relaxed a little. She had forgotten he was a vampire and could heal easily and quickly.

A low rumble sounded from behind Emerald. She stood and turned to look at the giant tiger, her heart spiking again. Would it attack her now? She wouldn't be able to heal like Storm would.

"It's all right," Storm groaned, hoisting himself up to his feet. "It's Sky."

Emerald looked at Storm for a moment then back at the tiger standing in front of her in the hallway. She'd seen shapeshifters, but never one as big. It was just, he was a tiger! A wild animal she'd only ever seen on TV or at the zoo, and she'd never been this close either. It was very unnerving.

Then she met the tiger's fire blue eyes and realized, it _was_ Sky.

"Are… are you okay?" Emerald asked, even though she didn't know how she'd understand him.

Sky shifted on his paws and let out a low growl.

"I'm going to take that as a yes. We should go find Carter now." Emerald suggested. And just like that Sky turned and took off down the hallway. "Sky!" she yelled but he was already turning a corner. She looked at Storm and then they both darted after him, careful not to lose him again.

It was a crazy coincidence but they found Carter soon after the encounter with Sky. Of course she almost had a heart attack at the sight of a 650 pound tiger. Who wouldn't? Except maybe other Night People… but that wasn't the point. Carter was merely human after all, and still getting used to just being soulmates.

But she was stronger than Emerald gave her credit for. She swallowed her fear, and trusted that Sky would never hurt her intentionally or otherwise. So, sticking together better this time, they navigated their way out, looking for familiar marks in the house to make sure they weren't going in circles.

Somehow they managed to get to the front door. (And for the record they'd tried the windows before going anywhere in the house. They looked to be bullet-proof windows.) They didn't encounter anyone because, Storm assumed, they'd taken out all of Jonathan's workers, whether it was together or apart.

Emerald touched the handle to their freedom when Carter whimpered. Emerald, Storm and Sky spun around to see Jonathan holding her hair with one hand, the other hand holding a knife poised to slit her throat at any moment. Emerald's hand slid off the handle and she walked forward past Storm. While Storm stood in place, jaw tight, analyzing the situation. Trying to think of every possible outcome and how he could help in those situations.

"Let her go." Emerald said her voice tight.

Jonathan smiled. "You're not the boss of me." he responded.

Beside Emerald, Sky growled his fur bristling, putting the weight on his haunches, like a cat would as it hunted prey. His tail lashed back and forth and his lips pulled back, showing his long, pointed teeth.

"Sky, don't," Emerald warned looking at him. His massive head turned and he snarled at her. Emerald didn't bat an eyelash. "Carter will get hurt. Don't do this."

"She's right," Jonathan said, bringing the knife closer to Carter's throat. Tears started to slide down Carter's face. "If you so much as take another step toward me, I will open up her throat." He jostled Carter and she whimpered, more tears spilling from her eyes.

"Let her go, Jonathan." Emerald ordered.

"Or you'll what?" Jonathan retorted, smirking. "You wouldn't risk your friend's life, would you?" He shook her again and Sky snarled furiously, but wisely stayed put. Jonathan laughed at Sky's reaction and looked at Emerald. "My dearest daughter," he mocked. "What would I get in return, hm?"

"What you want." Emerald said quietly.

Storm wanted to object badly, but he knew that as long as Carter's life was in any danger, he'd never be able to change her mind.

Jonathan smiled but said nothing. A chasm of silence formed between them until finally Jonathan spoke, "I don't know. How do I know you'll keep your word? Maybe I should just…" he trailed off and pressed the knife into Carter's neck.

The smell of blood hit Storm.

The moments afterward were a blur to Storm. He barely knew what happened. Maybe it was because it was such a tense moment, maybe because it'd been a painful memory of what happened soon after, or maybe it was just his body repressing horrid memories. Either way, it still happened in a flash.

Emerald yelled, "No!" and threw herself toward Jonathan and Carter a millisecond before Sky ran at them, his vision tinged with red, nothing on his mind but protecting his soulmate.

He couldn't slow down as, in three giant leaps, he approached Jonathan, Carter and Emerald, his paw already lashing out and hitting Emerald's left shoulder. Storm was thrown back into the present as he heard Emerald's joint being knocked out of her shoulder. Felt the blazing pain of having a dislocated joint. Emerald's knees buckled and Storm lunged forward to catch her, careful not to jostle her dislocated arm.

She was pallid and a thin sheen of sweat had already formed on her forehead. Her breathing was shallow and her eyes were half-open, glazed over. Sky crouched and growled over to the side, his tail lashing, hitting the wall, the sound like a hammer against cement.

"Emerald," Storm breathed frantically, his heart pounding in his throat. There was no response. Storm's grip unintentionally tightened, putting pressure on her arm.

Emerald's eyes squeezed closed and she let out a heart wrenching scream. Storm shifted positions feeling guilt weigh down his shoulders.

"Are you all right? I'm so sorry." Storm said quickly, lightly brushing some hair out of her face.

Emerald's eyes fluttered open and she met his worried gaze.

"I'm… okay," she told him faintly. "I'll… be fine. You… you need to go… with-with…" Her voice faded out for a moment before she pushed through the excruciating pain. "With Carter and Sky. Leave." she told him.

Storm looked up momentarily and realized Jonathan had let Carter go. She was kneeling by Sky, murmuring comforting words to him. His eyes were grief stricken.

"It's not your fault." Carter whispered totally ignoring the small cut on her neck that was currently oozing blood. "I'm okay. You were trying to protect me. No one blames you."

Storm looked back down at Emerald.

"No, I can't… I can't leave you." he said feverishly. "I'm not going to leave you here by yourself."

Emerald blinked and took a deep breath, before pushing herself out of Storm's arms and struggling to stand up. She wobbled and stumbled before finding her equilibrium and facing Storm. His heart ached and so did his shoulder, it throbbed in pain and agony. Sometimes what Emerald was feeling hit him full force and he swore for a second he blacked out from the physical suffering. Which only made him feel sick to his stomach. How Emerald was standing on two feet and forming coherent sentences was a mystery to him.

Storm stepped toward Emerald. "I'm _not_ leaving you. I can't do that!" he whispered his voice desperate, as Carter and Sky exited. It felt odd, though, after all the torment Jonathan had put them through, that they could just stroll out the front door all of a sudden, with no resistance. But Storm ignored them, his only focus on Emerald and her wellbeing.

"You… have to." Emerald breathed. "He'll only… kill you… before he… deals with me."

Storm shook his head in fervor. "Emerald—"

"I'll… be… fine." she tried to assure him.

"How can you be so sure?" Storm demanded. "He'll just kill you after he get what he wants."

"I know my dad," Emerald murmured. That's all she would say, but a thought flickered through the connection and hit Storm. It was hazy at first, like looking through a fogged up camera lens at something in the distance. The thought was fractured and out of order, the words mixing and spinning in his head.

Concentrating Storm deciphered the fragmented thought and suddenly was hit with harsh reality.

"You knew." Storm whispered, looking at Emerald with an afflicted expression. "You knew this whole time." He couldn't believe what he was just now noticing. It made him want to scream and cry and hit something. His heart squeezed tightly in his chest, his throat closed.

"Like father, like daughter," Jonathan commented smugly from behind Emerald.

Emerald's lower lip shook and tears flooded her eyes. "I had to do what was best for your safety." she told him in strangled tone.

"You _let_ us just walk into his traps and you _knew_ what he was planning. We could've died and you didn't tell us. Any of us. Not even me. You _lied_ to me. You kept this from me. You cut me out." With every word Storm's anger rose and so did his voice.

"Storm, please understand that there was no other way. I wanted to keep you guys safe. That was all that mattered to me." Emerald told him, her tears breaking free and streaming down her face.

But Storm had heard enough. He was tired of all this. Emerald was going to kill herself if she kept trying to protect others. If it was getting to the point that she no longer cared for her own life, why should he care?

_She__'__s __your __soulmate,_ some subconscious part of his brain whispered. That only made it worse, Storm decided. They were connected, they were practically one and if she didn't care about her own life, that was like saying she didn't care about Storm. She didn't care that it'd kill Storm to lose her. She just didn't care.

"_I __care __very __much __about __you!_" Emerald objected. "How could you even _think_ that… that I don't care?"

"I don't want to have this discussion right now." Storm said in a cold voice, letting the Reaper come out, halting any and all emotions. "Don't you need to get back to your dear old father?" he spat. Emerald flinched, but this didn't affect Storm in the slightest. He was tired of getting hurt because of Emerald's carelessness.

"Storm—" Emerald started.

Storm shook his head and backed toward the open door. "You wanted me to leave. So, I'll leave." he said spinning around and swiftly exiting the House of Horrors, slamming the door behind him, not looking back.

Inside, Emerald slammed her fist up against the closed door, her whole body shaking, tears pouring down her face. She had never meant to hurt Storm in that way. It was never supposed to end that way.

Now. Now it was all over. She was alone.

_That__'__s __what __you__'__ve __always __wanted, __wasn__'__t __it?_ the cold, cruel voice of her old self blew through her mind. _You__'__ve __finally __achieved __what __you__'__ve __been__ striving __for: __to __be __all __alone. __Congratulations._

With one last harsh sob, Emerald sunk into a dark void as the Vigilante surfaced, taking over her motor controls. Her tears froze, her shaking stopped, her mind quietly calculated the scenarios of the situation.

Things she could use at weapons, any wood items she could break to use as a stake, the escape routes she could take, any weak points on her father, how she'd fight him with a dislocated shoulder, how he'd react or adapt to her technique… the list just went on and on, taking only milliseconds in her mind.

The Vigilante pushed the emotions down, trying to smother them. Make them less, make the pain and aching in her chest less, the regret and aguish roaring inside her, struggling to take control, less. Slowly, her fisted hand slid off the door as she braced herself for what was to come.

The Vigilante turned to face a very smug Jonathan. She held her head high and started toward him with a look of determination in her eyes, that were as hard as crystals.

It was time to end this.

**Yay! I got my cliffy in! But don't worry, I'll be updating tomorrow, possibly even tonight… if I get really excited about this next chapter. Hope you enjoyed!**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	26. Twenty Six

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Breathless

Emerald's eyes opened, her pupils contracting quickly as white light flooded into them. She took a deep breath and smelled something fruity. It made her mouth water.

Someone gasped from beside her. "She's awake!" a familiar voice shrieked. "She's awake!"

Emerald's stomach growled. "Is that jell-o?" she asked trying to sit up, only to have pain ripple through her body. Clenching her teeth and holding her breath, she fell back onto the pillows, panting when the urge to scream had passed.

"Nikki, go get Mom and Dad," Margo instructed Nikki, who nodded and darted off, out of the ICU room Emerald was currently in.

"Is there any jell-o left?" Emerald asked, her brain still not fully functioning, the only thing on her mind being her empty stomach.

Just then Alecia and Alan walked in.

"Oh, thank God!" Alecia exclaimed shuffling up to the edge of Emerald's bed. "When you went missing we were so worried." Her voice broke and tears stung her eyes.

Alan wrapped his arms around her waist comfortingly. He looked tired; his hair disheveled, his eyes sunken in, rimmed darkly with purple, like he hadn't slept in weeks.

"How long was I gone?" Emerald asked, eyebrows furrowing together as her brain booted up.

"Just over ten days," Alan answered. "Not nearly as bad as a whole year, but—" He broke off, bile forming in his throat.

Emerald vaguely wondered about Carter, Sky and Storm. Her heart rate monitor spiked when his name popped into her head. Her chest suddenly ached and she felt vacant. She could no longer feel Storm's presence. She didn't know if he was okay or if he had gotten hurt or… or died.

And that horrible fight they had…. Emerald shuddered. It could've been their last goodbye for all she knew and it ended in a fight. It ended with him hating her guts because of her selfish behavior. Why couldn't she see that her choices always hurt Storm? Why was she so blind to how he felt, to his feelings?

It was all her fault. She was to blame for all of this.

"Can I see my friends?" Emerald asked looking at Alecia and Alan.

"I'm sorry sweetie, it's against hospital policy. Family is only allowed in the ICU." Alan explained quietly.

"When can I get out of the ICU?" Emerald asked bluntly. "I-I need to see them. I-I need to know they're okay." Emerald's heart rate monitor started going wild.

"Shh, shh," Alecia cooed, taking Emeralds hand. "It's okay. Calm down. You'll get to see them. I'm sure they're just fine."

But this wasn't reassuring at all to Emerald. She needed to _see_ them for herself. To know that they _were_ all right, they were okay and not hurt. If she didn't see them how did she know that they hadn't been kidnapped again? Here she was stuck in the hospital while her friends were being held captive. This didn't settle with Emerald well.

The beeping became and quick and uncontrollable, alerting the nurses monitoring Emerald's room. They rushed in a few moments after, ushering the family out, and then injecting medication into the small tube of Emerald's IV. The meds worked almost instantaneously. Emerald's heart slowed and her eyes dropped. The nurse checked all her vitals before turning out the lights and quietly closing the door as Emerald slowly slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

><p>She could feel him.<p>

She could feel his presence within the room.

Storm.

He'd come back.

Emerald wanted so desperately to open her eyes and see him. Apologize for acting so narcissistic and only hope that he'd take her back, after all the hurt she'd caused him. But her body wasn't listening to her. Her eyelids stayed closed, her fingers didn't even twitch. It was a weird sensation, the feeling of being completely awake but unable to move.

She heard Storm's soft footsteps walk up to her bed and the shift in the mattress as he sat down on the edge. His fingertips trailed over her cheek and down her neck. He stroked her hair before taking a handful and gently pulled her head back, arching her neck. Emerald's heart spiked, but the monitor didn't respond telling Emerald instantly that this _had_ to be a dream.

Or a nightmare.

She could just see Storm's eyes flash silver and his canines elongate into translucent, needle-sharp points. They sunk into her flesh and they didn't connect like what would usually happen, confirming that this wasn't really happening.

However, it felt like he was really drinking her blood. She felt lightheaded and dizzy not too soon after. Her heart stuttered and she felt short of breath. When she thought for sure, Storm was going to drain her dry, he pulled away. The monitor still beeped in a rhythmic, normal pace.

A few moments later something pressed up against her mouth and something dribble down her throat. Reflexively, she swallowed, not wanting to choke on the thick, wonderful tasting, empowering liquid. With every swallow she could feel the strength build within her again, the pain in her shoulder and stab wounds fading, her heart beat strengthening and steadying.

Another energy entered the room, it was colder, sharper, harsh.

Jonathan.

Storm pulled away and stood next to the edge of the bed. Emerald, still immobile, felt her heart practically shatter. Storm was working with her father? He couldn't have been! This was just a dream after all… wasn't it?

_What __do __you __want __from __me?_ Emerald thought.

Jonathan chuckled like he could hear her, which he probably could. He sat down on the bed just as the high from Storm's blood started to dwindle as she sunk into a mist that numbed her mind and slowed her heart tremendously. A war raged on within her; what was left of her pathetic human blood, battling against the ancient, powerful vampire blood.

Emerald wanted to panic, but her transformation was repressing this, her transformation into a vampire. The very thing she had never wanted to become.

She felt sleepy. If her eyes had been opened they would've been drooping, if not closed, by now. The sound around was fading. She felt as if she were floating in warm water that surrounded her and soaked her with this new energy, new vitality of a vampire.

She felt ten again. Now she was lying in a plethora of white, down sheets and fluffy pillows that lifted her head and aligned it with her spine, relieving any and all neck pain. It was a Saturday: no school. She had the freedom and comfort of sleeping in as most people today would be doing.

Outside the small suburban a car would pass by every now and again, stirring the spring air and in a whirlpool it rose to meet the mesh covering Emerald's open window, blowing through the room and hitting Emerald's nose with the smell of fresh cut grass and sweet honeysuckle. The sunlight shone through the window, lighting up and warming the bed and in turn bathing Emerald in its cleansing liquid gold.

Slowly, Emerald allowed herself to be taken into the sun's blissful warmth, floating on a cloud, the rhythmic beeping of her heart monitor turning into the sweet sound of a piano: Für Elise by Beethoven. One of her favorite piano songs: soothing and comforting.

But this comfort didn't last. Jonathan's voice broke through the notes, making it sound as if someone had just slammed their hand down on a bunch of the keys.

"'Lips as read as blood,'" Jonathan recited. The music struggled then to compose itself, the music sounding disjointed and off-key. "'Hair as black as night,'" Jonathan leaned in, to whisper in her ear, "'bring me your heart, my dear, dear snow white.'"

* * *

><p>Emerald was finally moved out of the ICU after three torturous days. Carter and Sky were the first ones in the room as soon as they heard she was moved. Emerald was doing a lot better as well. They were really just keeping her in the hospital for observation, making sure her shoulder was going to be all right, and that she wouldn't strain herself too much in fear of her stitches reopening.<p>

Her left arm was currently incapacitated at her side with an unusual brace that Emerald had never seen before. It was black and wrapped around her stomach, sticking with strong Velcro, just brushing the bottom of her ribcage. A small cuff was attached to the side that wrapped around her upper forearm, also held with Velcro, and one more cuff at the front that wrapped around the wrist, keeping her arm close to body and immovable.

Emerald had to wear it except for when she took a shower, or was dressing or undressing, or in rehab. Other than those small instances it had to be strapped up to her if her shoulder was to heal properly. It was thoroughly frustrating not being able to use her left arm at all. Having small, easy tasks become a little more difficult and some tasks impossible without help.

She hated feeling helpless.

"I'm glad you guys are okay." Emerald said smiling. "And I wanted to apologize for acting the way I had. I should've told you that this would happen and prepared you for this."

"We're glad that you're okay." Carter responded patting Emerald's hand. Today she was wearing her normal band tee and jeans, but her hair was pulled up into an upside down pony tail with a large butterfly clip showing her face clearly and making it look like she now had hair that was down to her shoulders instead of her waist. It was a new look that Carter had to get used to. "And we all got out, didn't we?"

"Oh, that reminds me, have… have you guys heard from Storm? Seen him, at all?" Emerald asked glad that she was no longer on a heart monitor.

Carter and Sky exchanged a look. Carter was sitting in the chair next to Emerald's bed, Sky standing behind her. They had gotten some cuts and bruises but that was really the worst, thankfully. All three of them had this air to them, you know, that air that everyone had after something mentally and physically traumatizing happened.

Emerald looked back and forth between Carter and Sky, her heart spiking, her mind straying to the worst.

"What? What's wrong? Is he okay? Is he hurt?" Emerald asked her voice rising with every passing second.

"No, no, he's fine." Sky assured her. "Just take some deep breaths and calm down. We don't want you opening those stitches."

Emerald nodded and closed her eyes, trying to calm herself. "Okay, okay, I'm calm. I'm calm. Just… just, please, tell me what happened." she begged. "I need know…. He's-he's cut me off. I can't sense him anymore, and I've just been so worried." Emerald almost started bawling right then, but she took hold of her emotions and blinked back her tears.

"It's… really hard to explain, actually." Carter murmured. She turned to look up at Sky. "Did you bring the note?"

"Uh, yeah, I have it right here." Sky reached into his suit pocket—the one that was hidden from view—and pulled out a folded letter that was designed to be its own envelope. The black wax seal was still attached.

Emerald took the letter slowly and felt it in her hand. It was thick, and the color of ivory. Very official. Then she looked at the seal and let out a small gasp. Even though it was black she could make out the intricate rose embedded within the wax, right down to each and every petal, leaf and thorn. It was the sign of made vampires in the Night World, the sign of Thierry Descouedres, Lord of the Night World.

"This can't be—" Emerald broke off and looked up at Carter and Sky disbelievingly.

"Just… just read it." Sky urged.

Uncertainly, Emerald slowly unfolded the letter and read the tasteful cursive in the exact middle of the cardstock.

_Dear Storm Kallahan,_

_ You are welcomed with open arms into Circle Daybreak at anytime. If you are to come down to Las Vegas we request you make yourself known a day before then. We'd all really appreciate it, we are in need of extra hands here at the mansion._

Below was Thierry's signature, and his name neatly written immediately underneath. Emerald threw it down on the bed.

"That's it?" she asked. "He didn't say what they needed him for? Why did he suddenly contact them? He's… he's in Vegas now?"

"Well, it looks like Storm has been talking to Lord Thierry, or whoever, for a while now. There's more letters hidden in his room." Sky explained. "This was the only one Mr. Kallahan found. He called us over and, well, I was curious. I found them on accident, I swear."

Emerald ignored this. "What am I going to do? I can't just show up unannounced, can I? I mean, this is Lord Thierry. That would be rude and disrespectful. But… but I need to see Storm, too." Emerald's voice broke and tears welled up in her eyes again. This was becoming way too much for her. The stress was starting to wear her down.

"Shh, shh," Carter comforted, taking Emerald's hand in both of hers. Emerald marveled at how warm Carter's hands were compared to her own, it was comforting. "It'll be fine. Just go. Say you're looking for Storm. I'm sure they'll understand."

"Uh, Carter—" Sky started hesitantly but broke off when she turned to glare up at him. She turned back to Emerald with soft eyes, the embers burning lightly, like a warm fire on Christmas Eve.

"Go. Lord of the Night World or not." Carter continued. She patted Emerald's hand. "Sky and I will take care of your pets."

"I… I guess I'm going to Vegas then."

* * *

><p>They say that darkness is merely the absence of light. As Emerald lay in that hospital bed, in that hospital room, in total silence and almost complete darkness, not being able to feel Storm with the connection, Emerald began to doubt that statement. Darkness seemed to be something all its own, just like light was.<p>

"You're pathetic," Jonathan spat throwing Emerald to the floor. She gritted her teeth but couldn't stop the scream from escaping her mouth. Jonathan slowly walked around her, his eyes never leaving her face. His eyes full of malice and shadows. "You're the infamous Vigilante." He snorted. "I would've mistaken you for one your weakling Lancers." He glared down at his daughter the edges of his lips turned down with contempt.

Emerald opened her mouth but Jonathan pressed his foot on her dislocated shoulder slowly, stretching out the pain. Emerald's screams like music to his ears. There was a loud crack as her joint popped back into its socket. Jonathan removed his foot as Emerald tried to catch her breath and hold back the rest of her screams.

Her shoulder throbbed and any miniscule movement of the muscles sent pain surging through her body.

"Awe, going to go and cry now?" Jonathan mocked sadistically. He sat down next to her with his legs underneath him and pulled her into his lap. She struggled, but every time she moved a new wave of pain washed over her making it nearly impossible for her to get away from him.

Jonathan held her up with one of his arms, cradling her, and used his free one to brush her hair out of her face.

"You look just like your mother, you know." he commented quietly. "She was a beautiful one. And you… you just had to go and kill her, didn't you?" he asked.

Again Emerald went to speak, but the words got caught in her throat as Jonathan gently pushed a small blade into her side. Her eyes became glassy and her mouth hung open, but a scream never came. She was too tired, too weak to scream anymore. All she could was hold her breath, her body tensing instinctively, and wait until he pulled the blade out.

"I love your mother very much, despite whatever lies she told you." He pushed the knife in once again. Emerald's back arched ever so slightly until he removed the blade. "I didn't abandon her for the Night World, like she thinks." Emerald's vision blurred as she unwillingly stared up at her seventeen-year-old father.

He had continued to talking to her, but she wasn't even half-awake. The pain and torture she'd gone through today was overwhelming. How she'd managed to stay awake through all of it up to this point really was some kind of miracle.

She wasn't sure how many times he'd plunged that cold piece of metal into her body, then at least.

"Nine times," the doctor told her the day after she'd woken up. "You were stabbed nine times. You're lucky to be alive, young lady. Somehow he missed all of your vital areas. It's amazing. Absolutely amazing."

It sure was.

* * *

><p>"You're going to be okay?" Emerald asked Carter as she turned and packed another pile of clothes into her backpack.<p>

Carter smiled. "Yeah, we'll be fine."

"Besides, I'm here to protect her now. She'll be safe under my watch." Sky put in. "And so will Artemis, Apollo, and Tigress." he tacked on.

"Thanks again, guys. I really appreciate that you're going to look after the suite and my pets. I know it's super last minute, but I have to go. I have to see him." she told them both.

"It's nothing," Sky shrugged. "I have to thank you for letting me rent it out. It's a fairly nice suite, and taking care of your pets is the least I can do."

Emerald zipped up her backpack and stood. "Just remember Artemis doesn't like boys that much, so I'd be wary around her. And Apollo might get into a fight with Artemis so, break that up before they get hurt. Don't let Tigress out of her tank, and call me if you have any questions, tarantulas are very fragile, and be sure to feed her a couple of crickets every night. Okay?" Emerald reminded him.

Sky picked up her backpack before she could and started ushering her to the door.

"Yeah, yeah, I've got it. Your pets will be just fine." Sky assured her, pushing her toward the open door where a luggage cart waited next to the door (Sky had insisted that she get a concierge to bring her luggage down, though she really only had one piece of luggage).

"Somehow that doesn't reassure me." Emerald muttered.

Sky loaded her backpack onto the cart and handed the concierge a tip. "Off you go." He patted Emerald's shoulder and gently pushed her in the direction that the concierge was heading off to. Carter darted out to give her a quick, bone-crushing hug and whisper, "Good luck." in her ear before shoving her forward.

"Bye guys, be safe, okay. Call sometime." she hollered, backing up before turning and jogging to catch up with her luggage.

The concierge loaded it into a taxi and she was off to the airport. The flight was quiet and the six hours gave Emerald time to think and worry and obsess over what Storm and she would talk about. She really didn't want to fight with him again, but was afraid that if it wasn't going to be a fight it was going to be a break up.

How do you talk about something like that? She'd lied to him and risked their lives on a gamble. He had a right to be mad. Would he accept her apology or had she run out of chances? How many times could you hurt a person before they finally gave up?

Emerald's stomach tightened and her heart jumped into her throat when the pilot announced their arrival and landing. She would soon be exiting and on her way to Lord Thierry's mansion.

It was easier to find the house than Emerald would've thought. It was kind of secluded, but had a nice long driveway lined with palm trees. At the end stood a large house, a spacious house, a house that Emerald had only ever seen on TV, even with her rich parents.

Sunlight beat down directly on Sin City as Emerald bravely walked down the long drive, her stomach churning and flip-flopping, bile rising in her throat. With every step her anxiety raised and it seemed like the mansion became farther way, like it was a desert mirage. Finally, though, she got the walkway that led up to the front door. It seemed just as long as the driveway.

Emerald stepped up onto the walkway and like magic the front door opened to reveal Storm. He looked far away but the sun gleamed off his deep red hair, and a smile lit up his dynamic azure eyes. Emerald's heart reacted by jumping in her chest before going double time.

As much as they were eager to see each other, steadily, they took a step closer, closing the distance between them slowly but surely. Time seemed to pause when they met in the middle. A cool breeze of air blew past them, ruffling Emerald's curls, but not-curls, and blowing her scent at Storm.

They embraced, Emerald with her one good arm around Storm's neck, Storm with his arms tightly ensnared around Emerald's waist. The moment was pure bliss. All the weight on Emerald's shoulders alleviated and it was like stepping out a sauna into the cool, fresh air. Her lungs expanded with sweet air, Storm's aroma wafting toward her.

The air went still and, like a vacuum, all the air was sucked right out from Emerald's lungs as a familiar cold object pierced her soft flesh as easily as scissors would cut through paper.

Emerald made a small noise at the back of her throat. Storm put a hand on the back of her head, stroking her hair.

"Shh, shh," he cooed just as he shoved his knife in deeper. Emerald made another noise and again, Storm quieted her and stroked her hair in a comforting way.

Emerald's father stood at the front steps of the mansion, on the last step, smiling like a maniac.

Emerald's eyelashes clumped together as tears found their way out, sliding down her cheeks, dripping onto Storm's shirt.

Even after all this time, even after the constant dreams that she'd had of Storm killing her, she was always surprised when he did. It always shocked her that he would do such a thing.

Then again, maybe this was what she deserved. Maybe this was her fate. Storm had told her that first time he'd killed her it was his job. Maybe he was just doing his job. He was the Reaper. He entranced huntresses and then when they least expected it he killed them. His method, Emerald would know, was snapping their necks, but Emerald must've been different to him.

Whether it was because she was his soulmate, or the fact that she'd killed his mother, or maybe it was because she was special to him. It could've been a number of things. But with all the blood on her hands, did it really matter in the way she died?

With a gasp, Emerald woke up to find herself still situated safely in the plane. Most of the people around her were sleeping, the lights dim, the windows closed. There were only a scattered few that were still awake reading or on the computer.

Emerald hadn't meant to fall asleep. She knew if she did she'd have a nightmare. She was right.

One of the flight attendants noticed her distress and walked over with a warm smile.

"Are you all right, miss?" she asked in a polite, low voice.

It took a moment for the words to comprehend in Emerald's foggy brain. "Um… yeah… yeah—I'm fine." she told the attendant.

"Would you like a pillow or a glass of water?" she persisted.

"A-a glass of water would be nice." Emerald stuttered repositioning herself, wishing she could stand up and stretch, her lower back throbbing, her legs screaming to be fully extended.

The attendant came back with a small, plastic glass of water with ice cubes. Emerald smiled and thanked her before she went off quietly down the aisle, looking for anyone else she could help.

Emerald sipped her water and took deep breaths, thinking over what'd she do when they landed, trying to think of anything else other than her nightmares.

There was no way of getting to Thierry's mansion. None of the letters that Storm had had contained an address, so Emerald was really just taking the leap into a pitch black chasm.

They landed just as the sun was setting on the horizon. It was a bit odd, because Emerald was so used to New York time, she'd left when the sun had already set, now it was setting… again.

She grabbed her backpack and exited swiftly, not wasting any time to finding Thierry's mansion, and hopefully finding Storm.

**Okay, I know it was more of a filler chapter, but I totally thought this was going to be the last chapter, which as you can see, really wasn't. But, I hope you enjoyed anyway. I apologize for the long wait, by the way, you know how school is.**

**I'll try to post tomorrow….**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	27. Twenty Seven

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: I've taken a scene from Soulmate, so there'll be some dialogue and I've also changed the event ever-so-slightly, but it's so small it doesn't affect the storyline at all. Hope you enjoy!**

Aftermath

Finding the mansion was harder than Emerald had wanted it to be. She wished it was as easy as it was in the dream… just without all the getting stabbed and stuff. Alas, it was very hard. Emerald had absolutely no sense of direction. Everything was so different from New York. And New York was her city. She'd lived there for a pretty long time, if you gave her a street she'd give you a place and vice versa.

But Las Vegas, Las Vegas was a whole new world. Everywhere she looked were buildings with blazing, flashing lights full of colors: green, orange, red, yellow, pink. It wasn't like New York in the slightest. Okay, so maybe it was a city that never slept, maybe it did have so many lights that it blocked out the stars, and maybe it was as loud as New York, but it was still different. It felt different and looked different, and the people were different.

Emerald didn't like Las Vegas in the slightest.

Thierry's house wasn't in the phone book (hey, she had to check, hadn't she?), and she highly doubted that someone on the street would know (they'd given her a weird look and walked off without another word). The only way she could possibly find his mansion was if she found a Night Person to tell her.

It was like the light bulb had just gone off in her head. Why didn't she think of that earlier? She'd done a thousand times over, luring unsuspecting vampires into their untimely deaths. She'd never been to Las Vegas and she changed her appearance constantly. They'd probably heard of The Vigilante but they didn't know what she looked like. She could just go as is (because she didn't think she'd be needing her Vigilante things; although she had brought her mask).

The last time she could remember luring a vampire into her trap was… was right before she met Storm, actually. (Man, it had been way too long since she'd had a fun night out on the town.)

Emerald smiled and chuckled at the memory. There was really only a few things that could get you thrown out of a cab: calling the taxi some bad names and pulling out a weapon. That time she'd done both. It was fairly amusing.

"Miss," the cabbie's voice broke her out of her reminiscing. "Where to?"

Emerald smiled. "Monte Carlo?" she asked lightly. The cab driver examined her through the rear-view mirror.

"How old are you?" he asked suspiciously.

"I don't think that's any of your concern." Emerald said stiffly.

"Listen, kid," he started. "I'd just get out and go back to wherever your mommy and daddy are. I don't think they'd appreciate you being all by yourself in such a big city."

Emerald sighed heavily. "That's too bad." She grabbed her backpack and slung it over her shoulder. "I had this friend," Emerald started reaching into her pocket and pulling out three hundred dollar bills. "Actually friends," she amended opening the door. "All named Benjamin."

"Miss, wait—" the cabbie started.

Emerald stepped out half way. "But I guess if you don't want my business,"

"I didn't mean that—"

"It's okay. You're right, I really shouldn't be out all by myself in a city so big." She stepped fully out and put a hand on the door.

"Miss, you don't have to do that—"

She cut him off and slammed the door before quickly walking off. That was more fun than the last time.

As Emerald walked she noticed that she'd caught the attention of a vampire out doing some hunting.

_Perfect,_ she thought smiling secretly to herself as she continued walking down the street. After a few moments she turned down a dimly lit alley. The boy appeared not too soon after. Like most Night World vampires this kid was about seventeen or eighteen. His hair was short and dirty blonde that stuck out in spikes around his head. His eyes were a bright crystal blue. He wore black jeans, boots, and a leather jacket with a white shirt underneath, and he was leaning up against the wall with his arms crossed.

"Tourist?" he called over to Emerald as she slowly walked toward him.

"Do I look like one?" she asked putting disappointment into her voice.

The Punk-Rock Stud smiled and chuckled. "Afraid so." He made no motion to walk toward Emerald. Which was good for her, not so good for him.

"What happened to your arm?' the Stud asked gesturing with his chin.

Emerald didn't answer until she was standing a few feet in front of him. Her smile was a little twisted as she told him, "I was attacked."

The Stud narrowed his eyes and looked down at her carefully. "By what?"

"A tiger. But it's okay. He was sorry about it afterward."

Emerald waited for the Stud to get it. It took a few seconds before his eyes widened and his back went rigid, but it was already too late. Before the Stud could do anything Emerald's foot shot out, like she was going to kick him, instead she pressed her foot up against his throat, specifically his Adam's apple, pinning him to the wall.

"Hunter," he spat his hand coming up to her leg. "I could easily break your leg—"

"Ah, ah, ah," Emerald reprimanded pressing her instep harder against his throat. "And I could just as easily break your Adam's Apple, giving me enough time to drive this through your heart." She pulled out her dagger.

"What do you want?" he growled his eyes flooding with silver.

"I'm looking for Thierry Descouedres, you wouldn't happen to know where he lives, would you?" she asked.

"Of course I do. Any Night Person living in Las Vegas knows." The Stud's voice turned mocking. "You're not actually going to kill the Lord of the Night World."

Emerald snorted. "Please, I'm not stupid. I… need to talk to him."

The Stud made a face. "Ugh, a damned Daybreaker, huh?"

Emerald applied more pressure to his neck. "Yeah, well, this damned Daybreaker just might end up killing you. So, do we have a deal? I'll spare your life and you take me to Thierry's house."

The Stud seemed to have to think about this but he finally nodded slowly… well as much as he could with Emerald's foot in the way at least.

"Good," She smiled cheekily and removed her foot.

"After you," The Stud gestured.

Emerald rolled her eyes. "Ladies first," she retorted. He gave her a glare before walking forward. Emerald followed a few feet behind, her dagger in her pocket, ready to grab and stab if needed.

Emerald didn't know what time it was but it was definitely late as the Punk-Rock Stud finally stopped at a long drive that was lined with palm trees. It was like Emerald had just been splashed with ice cold water in her face. It looked exactly the same as in her dream, right down to each and every palm tree.

"You won't… tell anyone I let you go and walked you over here, will you?" the Punk-Rock Stud asked, rubbing the back of his neck, not meeting her gaze.

"Just so long as you don't go making up rumors about me," Emerald negotiated. "And if I hear a single word on the street that says anything bad about me, I swear I'll hunt you down and kill you myself."

The Punk-Rock Stud visibly gulped and nodded feverishly. Emerald smiled. "Good. Thanks again." She then strode past him and down the driveway ignoring how walking down this familiar paved road, even at night, made her feel nauseous and her stomach churn. By the time she got the walkway she was hyperventilating.

Biting her lip she slowly walked forward to the door actually hoping that Storm _wouldn__'__t_ come out and greet her. It was irrational that she'd think that Storm would ever do something like that to hurt her or kill her in the waking world, but the dreams were becoming more frequent and it was starting to get to her. Little seeds had been planted and watered with her tears. Now they were blossoming into dark, twisted brambles that prodded and ripped at her thoughts, distorting them, making them bleed the truth and fill with lies.

She had made it to the front door. That was good. Now she needed to ring the doorbell… but what if they wouldn't come to the door. What if they were sleeping? How would they feel if she woke them up in the middle of the night?

Emerald shook her head. No, that didn't matter. She needed to see Storm. She _had_ to.

Before Emerald could change her mind she pushed the small white button and waited patiently, her heart hammering against her chest, threatening to break through. After what felt like years to Emerald, the door cracked open, revealing a man, maybe late teens, early twenties, who wore a brown suite and dark glasses. His brown hair was pulled back into a small ponytail. She reminded him a lot of an FBI agent which brought about bad memories….

Without breaking her gaze with the man's glasses, she slipped her foot through door.

"May I help you?" he asked in a clipped tone.

Emerald took a deep breath. "Yes, I wanted to talk to…. Well, I wanted to see—Um, I'm looking for… uh… Storm. Storm Kallahan." she stuttered wildly.

The man's expression never changed. "He's not here."

"You mean, like he hasn't been here or he's out?" Emerald questioned before he could close the door.

"Out." Was all he would say about that.

"When will he be back?" She continued.

"Listen, miss, it's really late. I'd appreciate if you came back tomorrow morning." He expertly dodged her question. Before Emerald could respond to this the guy was already closing the door, but because her foot was firmly placed between the door and frame it stopped.

The man looked down at her foot for a moment before looking back up at her.

"_I_ would appreciate it if I could stay… here until Storm gets back. I don't have any other place to stay and I don't have a lot of money to spend at a hotel and I've never been here." Emerald's voice started to become desperate. "Just… just until he gets back. Then I promise I'll go. I just need to see him, please. I'm begging you."

The man sighed. "I'll be right back, but I need you to remove your foot and I'm going to need your name."

"Emerald," she said pulling her foot from the frame. The FBI dude didn't budge. "Song, my last name is Song."

The door closed then and Emerald waited. The temperature had dropped. She was shivering slightly and having her back facing an open area where anything or anyone could attack wasn't very comfortable.

For a moment she could've sworn she heard yelling or arguing but it became quiet just as quickly. A moment later the door opened again.

"Only until Mr. Kallahan gets back," The man reminded her stepping aside and opening the door wider. Emerald quickly stepped in.

"Thank you, thank you so much. You don't know how much I appreciate this." she babbled feeling that the first trial was over.

"Follow me," he said before walking through the foyer and to the stairs at a brisk pace. Emerald did follow, though none of this felt right. It was like a cold, large rock was resting in the pit of her stomach and it wouldn't go away. Not even after knowing she'd be seeing Storm soon, not even after she knew she had a place to stay until he got back. None of this comforted her. The house felt cold, this FBI guy was—in her opinion—being unnecessarily chilly toward her too.

Okay, so she did kind of show up unannounced in the middle of the night, but he could've at least acted like he didn't hate her guts.

They got a room on the third floor and the dude opened the door for her without a single word. She muttered thanks before scurrying in. After taking a moment to look at the spacious room with a king-sized bed, she turned to say thanks again, but the man was gone. Sighing, she trudged over to the door and quietly closed it.

This was going to a long night, not to mention how long she'd be staying here until Storm got back.

* * *

><p>The next few days weren't very fun, to say the least. She never really saw anyone in the house. When she did they wouldn't talk to her or say hi, they'd just look at her with something of distaste (she was pretty sure) and then continued walking. When she went to kitchen, which was once a day, because she didn't want to seem like she was some kind of moocher, if anyone had been in there they'd leave as soon as she came in, even in mid-sentence.<p>

It wasn't blatantly obvious why they hated her so much, why they were so cold to her, but one thing was for sure: they didn't want her here. Heaven knows how many times they wished Storm would arrive back just to get rid of her.

As weird as it sounded, Emerald tried to keep to Eastern Time. She wanted to head back to New York as fast as she could, so it did no good to get used to Pacific Time just to go back to New York. So, Emerald kept her alarm clock and watch at Eastern Time. And because it seemed like none of the Daybreakers really wanted her here in the house, she'd get up at 3 am (6 am in New York) and go run fifteen miles, which took her roughly three hours. Afterward, she'd come back and get a glass of water and go back up to her room, to stay out of the line of fire.

About two days later, a girl showed up.

Emerald was in her room rereading one of her favorite novels when she'd heard some kind of commotion going on downstairs. Setting her book aside, Emerald quietly opened her door and slipped out, walking over the railing and peering over, down into the foyer.

"Nilsson, _wait_!" a girl, Lupe, shrieked halting in the middle of the hall before running over to the door, out of Emerald's sight. She was a tall, thin girl with silver-brown hair and wide amber eyes. She had a usual sunny disposition, Emerald had observed but not toward Emerald, of course. In fact, she seemed to act even colder than most around Emerald. It was quite odd.

"That's her!" Lupe's voice echoed through the hall, floating up to the third level of the house. "It's her! It's _her_." She vaguely reminded Emerald of a fan girl seeing her favorite singer, jumping up and down in excitement the only two words coming from her mouth: It's her! "_Her_!" Lupe reiterated for the fourth time.

There was a moment of silence, like they were putting the puzzle pieces together. Finally, Nilsson spoke, "My name is Nilsson, miss, please come inside." Emerald sighed, if only it had been that easy to come in. And he seemed to be treating her quite nicely…. Then again, she had no idea what Lupe mean by "it's her", so Emerald could totally be missing a huge chunk of vital information.

Emerald heard the door close and Nilsson started to speak again. "I'm very sorry, miss—I didn't realize… I hope you won't hold this—"

"No one knew you were _coming_," Lupe interjected to stop Nilsson. "And the worst thing is that Thierry's gone off somewhere. I don't think anybody knows where or when he'll be back. But meanwhile you'd better stay put. I don't want to think about what he'd do to us if we lost you." There was a small pause. "I'm Lupe Acevedo."

"Hannah Snow."

Well, obviously she was of importance to Thierry in some major way. So, it was fair that she was treated way better than Emerald. And Emerald hadn't even known that Thierry wasn't at the house…. To be fair though, no one talked to her about anything anyway.

"I know." Lupe responded. "We met before but I couldn't exactly introduce myself. Don't you remember?"

There was another long pause before Lupe started to speak again, "Yeah," she sounded absolutely delighted. Emerald must've missed a silent exchanged between them. "That was me. That's how I got these bruises. The other wolf got it worse though. I ripped him a new—"

"Would you like something to drink?" Nilsson asked, his turn to cut off Lupe. "Or eat? Why don't you come in and sit down?"

Hannah sounded faint when she finally answered. "I… thank you. I mean, you saved my life didn't you?" She was talking to Lupe.

"Part of the job. Want a Coke?" Lupe replied.

Hannah laughed. "I'd kill for one."

"I'll take care of it." Nilsson said quickly. "I'll take care of everything. Lupe, why don't you show her upstairs?" Emerald saw him flit across the foyer before disappearing again and hearing murmured conversations of other people downstairs. It sounded like they were trying to get hold of Thierry, like they didn't know where he was, which Emerald found odd.

"Come on," Lupe said loudly. "You look like you could use a bath." There were more shuffling feet and Emerald realized they were coming upstairs, so she quickly retreated to her bedroom.

The next day Emerald was feeling more antsy that morning, so she ran a whole marathon and got back at the mansion just after eight. But she found she still felt antsy and claustrophobic in the house. She'd been trapped up in that little room, too afraid to explore the house because of any encounters with the Daybreakers who seemed to avoid her at all costs.

She didn't really have any money to do any tourist things, so she wandered the streets of Las Vegas, looking around at all the lights, taking in all the sounds, scanning the crowds for Night People (not that a lot of them would be out in the middle of the day). Sometimes she'd catch a glimpse of a black flower painted on the back of alley doors, mostly dahlia's; the flower of witches. Emerald was very tempted to go into the store, the front entrance of course, but thought better of it. Witches really weren't as bad as vampires (some could be); there was really no need to stir the pot.

Soon enough, the sun began to set and the lights of the strip burned brightly and flashed in a disorienting way. As it got later, Emerald decided she'd head back to the mansion and try to a get a good night's sleep. It seemed like the night, the thing she used to be a part of, practically one with, was giving her the cold shoulder as well. She couldn't sleep fully and soundly through the night without a nightmare. It didn't matter what it was or who was in it, they deprived Emerald of sleep all the same.

Maybe getting out and wearing herself down would make her so tired she _wouldn__'__t_ be able to dream.

However when Emerald arrived back at the mansion people were scattered and things were in a panic. Outside, guards conversed and looked suspiciously over their shoulders, always scanning the area around Thierry's house. Inside was even worse: there were more of those FBI agents, running around; words flew all around the house as they communicated with each other.

Emerald only caught snippets. It sounded like Hannah had been kidnapped by Maya (Emerald couldn't be sure if it was _the_ Maya, but if it was, she wondered how someone like Hannah had gotten into such deep trouble), and they'd found Thierry… or Thierry had come back, or maybe he'd contacted them. She wasn't really sure. It was hard to concentrate when the agents were rushing around bumping into Emerald constantly.

Things were absolutely chaotic.

Emerald made her way to the kitchen to get a glass of water, but Rashel and Quinn were revealed to be arguing as the door swung open. Don't ask because Emerald wouldn't know. She assumed the kitchen was the only private place they could speak right now.

Anyhow, you could say it was awkward, but that would've been an understatement. They both turned toward her with cold eyes, Rashel breaking off mid-sentence.

Emerald worked up the nerve to say, "If… if there's anything I can do to help—"

"You've done enough, thank you." Rashel interrupted her coldly.

"Besides you'd only get in the way with your disability." Quinn added.

Emerald fought the impulse to attack him on the spot and show him how this cripple could beat him up, but there were two problems. Rashel was standing right there: no doubt she'd pull Emerald off before she could do any lasting damage, that is if Quinn didn't get to her first. Secondly, they seemed to be in a crisis, and interfering by getting into a fight wouldn't win any brownie points with these people.

Biting her tongue so hard Emerald tasted blood, she turned and stormed out of the kitchen and back upstairs to her room. With a growl, she ripped off her brace and threw it across the room.

Her shoulder was still severely sore, even after doing the exercises daily, like the doctor had instructed. She'd probably need to go in again for a follow up when she got back to New York. Until then… if she didn't want her shoulder to pop out, she would have to wear the stupid brace. It wasn't ideal, especially after being called disabled by a vampire, but if she wore it now, there would be less damage later.

With a resigned sigh, Emerald trudged over to her brace and carefully put it back on.

* * *

><p>Emerald flew up in her bed, her heart pounding behind her ribcage, sweat soaked her clothes and the sheets around her, her hair stuck to her neck and face, and she felt overheated.<p>

Still panting Emerald jumped off the bed and opened the window, sticking her head and gulping in deep breaths of cold air. It wasn't ideal because of the way Las Vegas smelled, but it was better than the air inside her room right now and it was cold, that was a bonus.

When Emerald felt she'd calmed down enough, she gently closed the window and walked back inside, but the walls were closing in, the air in the room was being sucked right from Emerald's lungs. Emerald let out a strangled cry and clutched at the wall. There was a moment when she thought that she was going to have a total meltdown, but as her heart slowed and the adrenaline ceased, her brain started to sort through her emotions.

With a few more deep breaths, Emerald had gotten herself under control. Still, she needed to move. After a quick shower and change of clothes, Emerald went out running again not counting how many miles she was running this time. She just ran and ran and ran, until she felt she couldn't run anymore. When that time came, she started back toward the mansion.

Exercise was good. It got oxygen to the brain and stimulated the muscles. It also helped Emerald think. She was going back to New York, it didn't matter if she found Storm or not. He obviously wanted nothing to do with her and if he did, he'd come find her himself.

When Emerald started down the long drive, through the thick night air, she saw a car. It was sitting idle near the walkway to Thierry's estate. Picking up the pace, her curiosity getting the best of her—hey she wasn't going to be here after this anyway—she ran down the drive, and as she got closer, she saw two people get out of the small black car with darkly tinted windows and no license plates. The first was a boy, of course the made vampire age with a shock of white-blond hair.

Based on what Emerald had heard, that was Thierry, Lord of the Night World. It was kind of odd to see a mere teenager being a Lord of anything, but he was one of the oldest, and second, vampires ever made.

After Thierry came a girl Emerald assumed was Hannah, based on everything that had gone on the past few days. She was pretty, Emerald had to admit. And the way Thierry looked at her, the way she looked at him, Emerald had to wonder if the reason she was so important was because they were soulmates.

Emerald slowed slightly, her breath caught, and her heart ached when the third person stepped out of the passenger's side door.

Storm, it was Storm. He'd finally come back.

No, she had to leave before he had time to corner her and ask why she was here. She didn't have the nerve to go up to him and demand to talk to him. It was honestly frightening. Not because she was afraid he'd hurt her or kill her, but because of what he'd say, how he'd react to her apology. They hadn't ended on the sweetest note, and thinking about actually talking to him about what happened when he was really there, when he was tangible, was too much.

Pushing herself even more so now, Emerald sprinted forward, swerving around the car and onto the walkway. She slowed slightly as she came close to Storm, closer than she had been in about a week (maybe ten days), but she pushed through her fear and kept running. She ignored his startled cry of her name and continued on, past Thierry and Hannah and into the house.

Inside she slammed the door and didn't stop running until in her room. She grabbed her backpack from underneath the bed and started throwing her clothes and toiletries into it. She slung the strap over her good shoulder and opened the door, almost crashing into Storm.

Curse his stupid vampiric speed.

His eyebrows quirked up slightly as he noticed Emerald's breathless, almost frazzled sate, and bloated backpack. "Going somewhere?" he asked crossing his arms.

**Just kidding about the last chapter thing! Guess, what, I've decided that I'm going to extend my story. I totally had a flash of brilliancy and came up with an awesome plot point that wouldn't work as a story by itself, so I'm smushing it into this one.**

**I'll update much sooner because it's Winter Break! Two weeks of no school!**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	28. Twenty Eight

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: I know I've used this title before (in another story), and I try my hardest not to use titles over, but I really think it fits this chapter. Also, it is based off of the song by Taylor Swift! One of my favorites (you should totally go listen to it if you haven't already heard it). Hope you enjoy!**

Haunted

"Yes, actually, I am." Emerald answered in a clipped tone, trying to get her heart to slow. She looked behind him at the empty hallway, yearning to just shove pass him and book it. "It is apparent that they don't want me here. I made a promise that when you arrived back I'd leave. I'm simply keeping to that promise. So, if you'll just excuse me—" Emerald took a step forward, toward the small gap between Storm and the door, but Storm moved accordingly, blocking her only way out.

"Why are you really here, Emerald?" Storm asked his voice not totally devoid of any emotion, but not full of happiness or elation in seeing Emerald either. "I know you, and you wouldn't have flown all the way to Las Vegas just to see me and then leave as soon you did." He paused. "Unless you're… scared, of something." His tone had a slight mocking edge to it.

Emerald, who'd been avoiding his gaze until now, glared up at him.

"Scared? What made you think I was scared?" she asked coldly. She knew it was true, but it was so frustrating when he pushed her buttons like that.

"Based on you totally ignoring me when I called your name, the backpack over your shoulder, and your eagerness to rush out, I think anyone watching would come to the conclusion that you're scared." Storm explained, not moving from his spot. "So, again, I ask: why are you here, Emerald?"

Emerald looked down again cursing to herself silently. Finally, without a word she turned and walked over to one of the bench windows, throwing her backpack against the wall just underneath the window, before situating herself on the bench, one bent leg on, one leg hanging over the side, back pressed up against the wall.

"I wanted to talk to you." she said quietly, still refusing to meet his eyes. Storm slowly closed the door, the room darkening tremendously, but didn't move from his spot across the room.

"About what?" he asked when Emerald didn't elaborate. When she still didn't continue, Storm decided to break the ice himself. "You know, I think you were wrong about something." he finally told her.

"Oh, wrong about what exactly?" Emerald mumbled, twiddling her fingers.

Storm finally came forward a little bit, stopping at the bed, and leaning against the frame. "You told me that day I saved you from being run over that you had died when you came back from your father's."

"Yeah, so?" Emerald asked wondering why in the world he was bringing this up.

"I think," Storm continued slowly, carefully choosing his words. "That when you take that first life, that you don't die completely, on the inside. When you kill someone for the first time, only… a part of you dies."

Emerald held up her hands, the darkness of the room doing no good to hide the blood.

"It wouldn't matter," she murmured. "I've killed so many that it's hard to believe I even have a soul left."

Storm walked up to the bench and sat down, mirroring Emerald, trying to catch her eye.

"I wanted to apologize," Emerald finally said, looking up at Storm, meeting his gaze. She felt breathless as she waited for his response to this.

His gaze was steady, his eyes perfectly clear as he told her: "I hope you know that this isn't going to change anything."

Emerald blinked. "I'm afraid I don't understand."

"I appreciate you coming to apologize to me, but I want you to know that doesn't automatically mean that everything's going to be good between us and we're going to get back together." he explained more.

Emerald's breath caught and she swears her heart stopped beating completely. Her chest tightened, her lungs expanded and contracted unnecessarily, her brain became foggy and heavy, her muscles cramped and shrieked for oxygen.

How had she not known? How had she been so oblivious? Was she so naϊve that she thought what Storm meant wasn't true? That it didn't have any deeper meaning that she was too distraught to notice? Emerald felt ridiculous for not realizing this, she felt so embarrassed.

"Emerald," Storm said softly, bringing her back to the present. Her face felt hot, her tears cool in comparison. "You… you did know… that we—"

Emerald wiped away her tears and forced a painful smile. "I know—I… I knew, already. Of course I knew. How could I not?" She sniffled and wiped more of her tears away, but they just kept coming and coming. "Um… my apology." She took a deep, shaky breath and broke eye contact, her smile dropping, looking out at the window. She had to hold it together for just a few more seconds longer. That was all she needed to do and then she could give in. She could let her demons have their way with her.

She looked back over at Storm. "I wanted to say that I'm sorry. I'm sorry for… everything I've put you through. I'm sorry for all my antics and all the pain I've caused you. I didn't see how selfish I was being, and you've opened my eyes to this. I appreciate that.

"And I'm sorry for taking your love for granted. I never sat down to fully appreciate and be grateful for how much you care—cared—about me. And I hope that for this one last time you can forgive me." She finished and forced another small, painful smile. "Bye, Storm." She choked out, her voice almost breaking.

Before waiting for his reaction or whatever he might want to say, Emerald grabbed her backpack, throwing it over her shoulder as she quickly made her way to the door. The dam wasn't going to hold much longer and she needed to be far, far away from here. Like New York far. She didn't want to have anything to do with Las Vegas anymore.

It wasn't home.

Taking deep breaths, trying to get her dead heart to beat again, Emerald went over to the railing, looking down. Three stories was too far up. She glanced at the stairs, but they'd take too long…. But if she injured herself now, it'd do no good. Making a snap decision, Emerald sprinted down the stairs until she got to the second floor, where she promptly grabbed the railing with her good arm, and threw both her legs over. Holding her breath, Emerald braced for impact and as soon as the balls of her feet hit the floor, she rolled to her right. As soon as her feet hit the floor again she launched herself toward the front door and was on the Strip in no time at all.

* * *

><p>"What's the earliest flight you have back to New York?" Emerald asked the woman at the desk, breathless, struggling to keep her head above the surface of the water.<p>

The woman typed away on the computer and scanned the screen. "We have one seat left for our two o'clock, but it leaves in five minutes. Can you make it?" If it got Emerald out of here then she could make it in thirty seconds.

Emerald nodded feverishly and handed the women the cash. "Thank you." she said grabbing the tickets and sprinting off to the gate. It was easier than Emerald had thought because it wasn't horribly crowded at 1:57 in the morning, thankfully. But she had run all the way here and she was starting to drown. She was tired, and weak, and worn, and her muscles were giving out on her.

She got to the gate just as the doors closed. She didn't hesitate to run up to the man at the desk.

"You have to open those doors," she begged. "Please, I need to get on that plane."

"Hold on, miss, I'll get a hold of the pilot." he told her in a soothing voice before picking up the phone and dialing in. Emerald waited, tapping her foot impatiently, glancing at the doors nervously. The man hung up a few moments later; the expression on his face was enough of an answer. "I'm sorry, he can't turn around. But I can get you tickets for the next flight, if you'd like—" The man broke off on the account of Emerald breaking down into tears.

She fell against the desk and slid to the floor, collapsing in body racking sobs. The man ran around the desk and knelt down next to her.

"Miss? Are… are you all right?" he asked looking for the world he didn't know what to do. To be fair, he had probably never dealt with such an angsty teenager. A few other workers had also gathered around to see what was going on.

Emerald mentally scolded herself and tried to get a hold of her emotions. "I… I-I'm f-f-fine." she stuttered, sniffling and wiping her tears away. "I-I'm s-s-sorry."

"Would… would you like any water, or something?" he asked skeptically.

Emerald shook her head. "No, I'm fine." she repeated in a stronger voice, grabbing the edge of the desk and hoisting herself to her feet. "I'm sorry, I just need a moment." The workers stepped back and Emerald walked over to one of the chairs near the gate and heavily sat down, throwing her backpack at her feet. With a deep breath, Emerald closed her eyes and leaned back, trying to push down the excruciating hollowness that filled her at this moment.

She thought back to when she was fourteen, when her father had kidnapped her. How had she handled the pain then? She'd built up walls, walls that could hold all of America's gold; vaulted, steel, coded walls.

Storm had cracked that code, broke through the steel like it was tissue. He'd gotten to that precious gold that Emerald had so desperately tried to protect. Now it was all gone, she'd given it all to him.

She'd lost everything.

Suddenly a hand came down on her wrist. Her eyes flew open and she sat up straight, looking over to her right to see who it was.

"Dad," she breathed, meeting his eyes, her eyes.

Jonathan smiled pleasantly. "Hello, Emerald." he said smoothly.

Emerald's eyes flickered over to the desk, the man was missing; the two people who greeted you at the gate were also gone. None of the workers were nowhere to be seen. Emerald tried to pull away, but Jonathan grabbed her wrist tightly, cutting off her circulation. She twisted her wrist, trying to get it out of this iron vice.

"Let go of me." Emerald spat through gritted teeth, so angry her voice shook.

"I heard you and Storm broke up." Jonathan commented. Emerald looked away and took a deep breath.

"You've been stalking me." she accused when she had found her voice again.

"I promise you, I haven't." Jonathan assured.

Emerald glared at him again. "Then how—?"

"I am your father, Emerald, whether you like it or not. And, as your father, I just know certain things."

"_What __do __you __want __from __me?_" Emerald asked slowly trying again to pull her wrist out of his hand. His grip tightened and Emerald shifted in her chair uncomfortably.

"Now you know how I feel." he said. "How your mother felt."

Emerald turned to look at him, ready to roll her eyes and say, "The only thing we have in common are our genes." But when she looked over at her father the words died in her throat and the ugly truth finally registered.

She did know how her parents felt and it sickened her. Being related to them by blood was bad enough, now she could actually… sympathize with them. Sympathize with two wicked creatures that killed and tortured for fun.

Jonathan laughed, startling Emerald out of her musings.

"Please don't tell me that you don't enjoy killing our kind." he said like he was reading her thoughts.

"I don't!" Emerald snapped, memories of talking about this with her mother resurfacing. "I don't enjoy killing! Why do you guys keep saying that?"

Jonathan leaned forward, his face coming within inches of Emerald's. She tried to pull away but Jonathan tightened his grip on her wrist, putting so much pressure on it, she thought for sure it would break.

Biting back a scream, Emerald turned her head away, not wanting to look at Jonathan. What was he doing here? How'd he know she was here in the first place? _What __did __he __want __from __her?_

"Just admit it, Emerald," Jonathan whispered alluringly in her ear. "You enjoy ridding my kind from the world."

"Let go of my wrist, Jonathan." Emerald ordered through gritted teeth, looking straight ahead, still refusing to meet his eyes.

There was a moment before he did, he finally released her wrist. Emerald stretched her hand as the blood flowed painfully back into her hand. A second before she could pull away, however, Jonathan put his right hand back on it—gently, thank God—and his left grabbed her upper forearm, pulling her closer to him.

"Give in, Emerald. Give in to those monsters inside of you." Jonathan continued, in an urging tone now.

"I won't," Emerald shook her head. "I won't." she whispered, more to herself now than to Jonathan.

"Stop fighting," Jonathan coaxed. "Stop fighting a losing battle. Give up."

"It's not a losing battle." Emerald told him. "I'm not going to give up. I am not weak like _you_."

"I am not weak!" Jonathan hissed, his hands closing fully around her arm and wrist again. This only lasted a few seconds, before he got a hold of himself again. His grip slackened and he took a deep breath. "I know you want to. You can't fight it forever, Emerald. The pain of your breakup will eat you alive until you're an empty shell of yourself." He chuckled. "Let's be frank here, you are soulmates and soulmates are not supposed to be apart like you are right now. How long will you be able to fight the pain? How long will you be able to keep those demons at bay?

"My guess is not long if you've been doing it for three years already. Your mind is weak. Your spirit is diminished. You can't take much more of this. Just let go, Emerald. Let go and I promise that all the pain will disappear. It'll be gone forever. Just think of the relief from a broken heart. You'll be able to breathe. To do whatever you want. To do whatever you _need_."

Emerald shook her head, taking deep breaths, almost on the verge of gasping, trying to fight off all demons and monsters that had already broken through the barrier; broken out of the cage she's kept them in, clawing their way up her throat; fighting to take over her motor controls.

_I__won__'__t._

_ I won't._

_ I won't._

She repeated over and over in her head.

Jonathan could tell, though, she was thinking about. He'd planted that seed, and that was all that he needed.

"Give in." Jonathan urged, drowning out Emerald's own inner voice and its feeble attempts to keep her fighting.

"I won't." Emerald repeated aloud squeezing her eyes shut.

"No battles." Jonathan reminded her.

"I won't." she said again.

"No _pain_."

"I… won't." Emerald's eyes opened again.

"Just freedom."

"I… I… I won't…." Her voice sounded hesitant this time as she turned her head to look over at her father.

"You know you want to." Jonathan said smiling, and pulling back to a comfortable distance again, and letting go of her completely.

"I… d-don't," Emerald shook her head forcing the demons down again. But they weren't giving up and she couldn't hold on for much longer.

"I know you, Emerald. I can see it in your eyes, you're tired of fighting. And the breakup had been the breaking point." Jonathan and Emerald looked at each other for a moment and then something gave. Jonathan could see something behind Emerald's eyes shatter releasing the monster inside.

Jonathan smiled pleased. "So, what do you say, are you with me?" he asked holding out his hand.

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	29. Twenty Nine

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: The chapter is slightly based off of "Animal I Have Become" by Three Days Grace. Hope you enjoy!**

Animal

New York City: the Big Apple, the Statue of Liberty, Times Square, Broadway, the Empire State Building, honking horns, pedestrians flooding the streets… it was the best city in the world to this girl. It was home; a place where she felt she truly belonged.

And there was no bigger rush than hunting. It got her adrenaline pumping. It got her heart racing. There was nothing better than luring an unsuspecting human into your trap. Going at it different ways each time: a lost tourist, someone who's looking for a good club to party at, someone looking for a good time…. It was a game of cat-and-mouse that never ended and never got monotonous.

The best part though—the _best_ part of the hunt—was seeing the look on that pathetic human's face when you smile and show your teeth. How their heart pumps that powerful, enriching, invigorating blood. How their eyes widen in disbelief. How their scent of fear surrounds you, making it even more enticing as you lean in close for the kill. The heat of their racing blood hitting you every time their heart beats.

Connecting minds with the prey isn't as bad as some vampires think. Seeing into the mind of your prey is an interesting experience. You get to see what this person has done in their life. You get to see all the bad things they've done. The good things—if any—they've done.

And, of course, don't forget about the feeling afterward: the feeling of being able to breathe easier, literally. Not only that, but seeing everything around you as if it were the middle of the day; hearing a person's conversation from across a busy Manhattan street; feeling the Power pulsing within you; becoming one with the night.

"What do you want from me?" a male's voice snarled.

_Vampire._

"What makes you think we want anything from you?" a female's voice answered.

_Hunter._

"Besides you're a _leech_." a different male voice spat.

_Hunter._

The girl was interrupted during her midnight stroll through the dangerous, usually quiet at night, parts of town, stopping in front of the opening to poorly lit alleyway.

Smiling to herself she silently, stealthily, expertly crept into the darkest part of the alley, turning into the darkness, the shadows.

If it wasn't already obvious two hunters had managed to corner a vampire. She stood and watched the two, interrogate this poor vampire, stabbing him when he didn't answer, or as motivation to answer.

_Should I help him? Should I not? What would I gain if I did?_ The girl questioned as this torture-interrogating session continued.

_Need assistance?_ She finally asked the boy telepathically. He wasn't half-bad looking with fluffy, curly blond hair and bright sky blue eyes. However, he looked somewhat exhausted with cuts and bruises, his chest heaving like they'd just gotten done with a fight. Oh, and of course his new wounds from the girl's knife.

His sky blue eyes darted around the alley looking around to put a face to this mysterious voice, before his face contorted in pain as the girl stuck her blade into his side. He let out a hiss.

"Who are you?" the boy growled. "What do you want?"

The female hunter got an exasperated look in her eyes. "I thought we've been over this—"

Pursing her lips the girl took a small step forward, still slightly covered curiously in darkness. Her hair hung around her face, in very loose spirals; thick, sleek, glossy. It was almost ghostly how it framed her face nicely, partly covering her right eye, making her all the more eerie, but intriguing. The small, delicate smile on her face was sinister and wicked.

The male hunter held up his spear point facing the girl as he sneered, "Well would you look who it is."

The female hunter snorted. "You shouldn't be here. Are you so blind, so stupid, that you didn't know you were thrown out? We thought for sure that you not showing up at our headquarters meant you knew." she sighed sarcastically.

"I guess she was just too scared to show her face back here. What, afraid that we might get revenge?" He jabbed at her. "Have a little fun." He jokingly jabbed at her again, but this time the girl's hand shot out and caught the shaft of his spear. There was a moment of tense silence before she did a 360 toward the male hunter, hitting him square in the nose with her elbow as soon as she had done her full rotation. As he collapsed she pulled the spear out of his hand, swinging it around and cutting the girl across the cheek, through her scarf.

Before the female hunter could respond, the other girl brought the shaft of the spear back around hitting the girl's head so hard the shaft splintered. The female hunter hit the ground and the girl threw the spear down next to her.

A smirk still on her face she turned her head to look at the vampire male. He was glaring at her, his eyes silver, his canines pushing down into his bottom lip. It looked like he wasn't about to give up just yet.

"What are you playing at?" he snarled, his muscles rippling, his body tensing.

"You didn't answer my question so I took your questions as a yes." the girl told him not bothered by the fact that he could attack at any second. "Although," the girl started looking slightly peeved, "I would've really appreciated it if you hadn't given my position away so quickly. I was having fun."

"Well I'm sorry for being so weak I couldn't telepathically communicate with you." he replied scathingly, turning back to his human appearance.

"You look kind of beat up. Care to join me?" the girl asked pulling the unconscious male hunter toward her, grabbing his hair, pulling his head back and exposing his neck.

The blond-haired, blue-eyed boy's eyebrows quirked up and a devilish smile pulled at the edge of his lips.

"I like the way you think." he commented, picking up the girl, and together they let the silver flood their eyes, and their canines elongate into deadly points.

The girl smiled and laughed before they both plunged their teeth into the necks of the unconscious hunters, and feasted.

The girl let the male hunter drop from her grasp and she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath in, enjoying that high she always had after feeding.

"That was the most fun I've had in the last few hours." she remarked as the boy finished up.

"You're new to this, aren't you?" the boy asked licking his lips for any excess blood.

"What you mean the killing? I used to be one of them." She shrugged. "Doesn't bother me."

"No, I mean the vampire thing." the boy elaborated.

"What, you don't enjoy hunting as much as I do?" she asked raising an eyebrow, smiling.

"It gets kind of… tiresome after a while."

"Then you just have to find ways to spice it up a little." the girl suggested, winking and giving him an infamous secretive smile. "Oh, you've got some—" She reached up and pointed at her own face, the top corner of her lips.

The boy's hand moved to wipe it away but the girl put her hand out and stopped his hand from going any further.

"Let me get that for you." she said before grabbing his shirt collar and pulling him in for a kiss.

"I _really_ like the way you think." the boy said after they'd broken apart.

The girl laughed lightly. "What's your name?" she questioned.

"Stan," he answered. "You?"

The girl smiled her eyes lighting up nefariously as she did so.

"It's—"

* * *

><p>"<em>Storm?<em>" Adrian asked getting his son's attention.

Storm blinked and shook his head, trying not to let his mind wander too much. "Sorry, I kind of zoned out." he mumbled rubbing his forehead like he had a headache.

"_How are things in Las Vegas?_" Storm's father asked.

"They're fine," Storm answered quietly.

"_You sound tired. Has Lord Thierry been sending you out a lot?_" Adrian's tone filled with worry.

"No, no," Storm murmured, taking a deep breath and lying back in his bed. "Not lately, at least. I just haven't been feeling… myself, is all."

"_Do you want to talk about it?_" Adrian asked hesitantly.

Storm thought about this for a moment. "Not really, no." he finally said, his eyes drooping in fatigue by just thinking about it.

Adrian sighed on the other end. "_When are you coming home? The house it too empty without you here._"

"I don't know. I'm only staying for as long as Lord Thierry needs me here." Storm said, closing his eyes fully. "You should really think about getting out there again, Dad."

"_Storm, we've been over this before. I'm just… not ready for a relationship right now._"

Storm sat up, throwing his legs over the side of the bed. "Dad, it's been four years. You need to… you need to move on. You can't keep living in the past." Storm whispered, trying not to let the pain leak through.

"_You haven't moved on, either._" Adrian defended. "_You're mother was everything I've ever wanted in a woman. Everything I needed and loved… I can't just let her go like she was nothing._"

"I know—I know… I-I really shouldn't have brought it up. I'm really tired. I really need rest. I'll call you later, okay?"

"_All right, stay safe._" Adrian sighed. "_I love you, Storm._"

"Love you too, Dad."

Storm hung up and set his phone heavily on the nightstand before lying back down and closing his eyes.

He hadn't been feeling well since the last time he'd talked with Emerald, and that scared him. It had been about two or three in the morning when Storm had woken up from an excruciating pain in his chest. It was so terrible, and so painful that he wouldn't even wish it upon his worst enemy. It was like someone had reached into his chest and ripped out his heart, leaving a gaping hole in his chest, bleeding and raw and throbbing.

Everyday Storm struggled to breathe, like his lungs had been constricted by vines and he couldn't fully expand them, couldn't get a full, deep breath in. Everyday did Storm struggle to rid himself of the awful vacant feeling that threatened to consume his soul. Every night did Storm lose sleep over nightmares that haunted him, nightmares that he didn't understand. They made no sense.

It felt like he was dying inside, slowly wilting away.

The steel silver cord that held Storm and Emerald together had snapped letting Storm fall in a bottomless chasm; letting him fall into his deepest, darkest secrets he promised himself he'd never return to; letting him slowly descend into madness.

Of course, he didn't think it was possible—he didn't want to believe that soulmates' connection could be broken, ever—because that could only mean one thing; one thing that made Storm shudder; one thing that made Storm's stomach twist into a knot; one thing that made him drown in his own guilt; one thing that could tear him to ribbons; one thing that could made him wish that this was all just one big, heinous hallucination: Emerald had died.

* * *

><p>Storm jerked awake in his bed, his chest heaving. Screams echoed in his mind, never ceasing. He covered his ears and curled in on himself, trying to get the shrieking to stop. It was horrible, blood-curdling screaming that shook Storm to his very core.<p>

Suddenly, it seemed that the commotion had entered the waking world. There were shouts and shuffling and running feet downstairs. It took Storm a while to realize that he wasn't just imagining this anymore, something pretty serious was going on downstairs.

Throwing his legs off the side of the bed, Storm ran to his door and flung it open, going over to the railing and looking down into the foyer. He could really see anything from his vantage point, but he could hear what they were saying more clearly.

"We've got her!"

"Bring her in!"

"Be on guard, she's dangerous!"

The curiosity getting the best of him Storm sprinted down the steps. He'd been sent out by Lord Thierry for the past few days and hadn't been at the mansion for more than a few minutes at a time in those few days, so Storm had no idea what was going on and his guess was as good as a stranger on the outside looking in.

Downstairs Lord Thierry was a few feet away from the foot of the stairs next to Quinn. Lord Thierry looked tense and grim and infuriated. Quinn just looked infuriated.

"Lord Thierry, what's going on?" Storm asked looking at all his running FBI agent-like workers.

"There's something I need to tell you, Storm." Thierry said quietly, monitoring every single move his guards made. Storm waited patiently. "A few days ago when you were gone we had a situation." Thierry's hands balled into fists. Quinn gritted his teeth, his black eyes glittering with animosity.

This next part Thierry had to choke out, "Hannah and Rashel were both kidnapped." he spat through clenched teeth.

"Why didn't you tell me about this before? I could've helped out if you needed." Storm offered.

Thierry sighed heavily and turned his head to look at Storm. His dark eyes were sorrowful and hurt now, no sign of anger. Storm wasn't sure if it was because he'd just lost Hannah after finally finding her again, or if it was sorrow for him… for some unknown reason to Storm.

"No, I don't think you could." Thierry told him in an almost inaudible voice.

Before Storm could ask why, the front doors to the mansion burst open. Storm looked, his heart pounding, blood roaring in his ears as he awaited the arrival of whoever this girl was that they suspected of kidnapping Hannah and Rashel.

First came half-way in was one of Thierry's staff in his suit and glasses, struggling to keep hold of someone. Not a moment after he stepped in did that someone come in, kicking and struggling against the two vampires that were trying to keep her subdued; one on each side, holding her arms.

Her hands were tied behind her back with thick bast rope, but she fought and battled against the two as ferociously as a tiger. She snarled and growled and hissed. Her two-inch heels, clicked, scrapped and scratched the marble floors of the foyer as the two holding her dragged her through.

Her hair was flying everywhere, but showed no sign of tangling taking place as she did so. Her face was perfect and pale, but had an expression that could kill: a goddess of death.

Storm's heart turned to stone and dropped to the floor when he first laid eyes on her struggling form. The sound of shattering broke through the sound of the roar in his ears as his world fell apart around him. They had to have made a mistake! It couldn't be! I just couldn't!

"Wait." Thierry ordered his voice tight. Quinn stood beside him rigid, holding his breath, trying to constrain himself from attacking her.

Storm quietly gasped for air, his eyes wide as he stared at this girl. He didn't want to believe it. But how could he not? Was his mind playing tricks on him?

Storm took a small step forward his eyes never leaving the girl's face.

"Emerald?" he asked his voice coming out in a broken whisper.

The girl smiled but it wasn't sweet, it wasn't innocent, it wasn't apologetic, it was… malevolent, malicious, purely evil. Her black hair falling over her shoulder and concealing half her eye didn't make the look any better: it just made her look all the more villainous, one of those crazy, psychological villains.

"Hello, Storm," she said—her voice even different than Storm last remembered—with that horrible smirk still on her face.

* * *

><p>Hal sighed and trudged up the stairs, his feet dragging. New York City was becoming less and less safe every second. All the hunters in his division were staying home because of serious injuries acquired while hunting (at least five had been killed), the vampires escaping as a result. So it wasn't only that his hunters were being injured, but it was also more vampires were still out on the street. There were only a few that could come in tonight. But he was starting to have his reservations about sending them out. If they were injured, or killed, as well, New York would be totally unprotected and even more people would die.<p>

Not to mention they did have families… well as close as they could get to families. (They had become hunters for a reason, hadn't they?)

Hal went to unlock the door, but as he reached forward he realized the door was already open. Immediately alert, he pulled out a stake and pushed the door open. It slowly swished open with an ominous creak. The inside was completely empty from what Hal could tell; still that door was never open like it had been. Something was terribly off.

Breathing shallowly, he crept in, his eyes darting around the room looking for any sign of movement. And as soon as he fully stepped in the door slammed closed behind him. Hal quickly spun around, heart racing, adrenaline pumping, stake raised in defense.

Emerald smiled and crossed her arms.

"Hey stranger,"

Hal dropped his hand and relaxed. "God, Emerald, you scared me—" Hal broke off really _seeing_ her for the first time. "You traitor." he hissed, gripping his stake, his jaw working.

Emerald rolled her eyes. "Oh please, don't be so dramatic."

Hal's eyes narrowed. "_You._ You're the one killing and injuring my hunters!" he spat.

Emerald shrugged her smile widening. "Guilty is charged."

"You know what this means don't you?" Hal asked darkly.

"I know what it means, but I don't think it'll end the way you think." Emerald responded.

Hal twirled the stake in his hand smiling without humor. "That's what you think." he retorted. "Just because we were hunters together doesn't mean I won't be able to kill you without a second thought. You're a _blood-sucker_ now. I should've known that you would've turned with your pretty-boy vampire boyfriend."

Emerald chuckled but said nothing about their break-up and instead threw out her fist. She had to admit, Hal was a skilled hunter and a well-trained fighter. He deflected her right cross-over easily before taking a stab at her from above. Emerald caught his wrist and spun him around reaching up and wrapping a hand around his throat.

Hal quickly responded by jabbing his elbow in her solar plexus. Emerald hissed and let go of Hal who turned around smirking.

"You've gotten a little rusty, Emerald. Does immortality not suit you as well as you'd like?" Hal mocked.

"That was just the opening, you have no idea what's in store for you." Emerald countered unfazed by his statements, walking toward him, looking more sinister than Hal had ever seen her before. She bared her fangs and hissed at him. Just like that, quick as lightning, she lashed out with a sidekick to the head, disorienting Hal. Then she came back around punching him in the nose. He stumbled back and she swept her feet underneath his, making Hal lose balance and fall onto his back.

Still disoriented, Hal's stake flew out of his hand a few feet away. Smiling with satisfaction Emerald slowly walked forward, her heels clacking against the hardwood floor, as Hal started to vainly reach for his stake. Emerald got there just as his fingertips brushed the weapon and kicked it away; it skittered across the room and underneath a small table.

Emerald came back and knelt down near Hal's head.

"Sorry, old friend, it had to be done." She told him patting his cheek. He flinched and jerked away.

"You don't have to do this, Emerald." Hal mumbled trying to get over the pain of the broken nose Emerald had just given him.

Emerald smiled down at him. "Oh, Hal, on the contrary, I do have to do this."

"We used to be friends, Emerald. You can't think that just because you turning into a vampire is going to change that fact."

Emerald shook her head and laughed. "Oh, you cease to amuse me, Hal. I thought you said that you'd be able to kill me without a second thought. I mean, I am a vampire now. And you're a hunter. It's just what you and I do. We're 'mortal' enemies—as cliché as that sounds." She sighed and shook her head again that smile still on her face. "Well, guess what?" Emerald leaned in close and whispered, "The feeling is mutual."

Emerald stood and Hal shook his head, tears forming in his eyes. "Emerald, please, you _don't_ have to do this!"

"Sorry, Hal, I told you before and I'll tell you again: I _do_, in fact, have to." Emerald said over Hal's pleads: "I'll do anything! Don't do this!"

"It's too late for that, Hal." Emerald whispered quietly, her smile dropping, her expression becoming ruthless. "Much too late." she told him stepping on his upper forearm until it snapped. Hal howled in pain and turned over onto his side, cradling his broken arm. Emerald looked up, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath as Hal's screams continued.

* * *

><p>"Knock, knock," Jonathan said pushing the door open. Emerald hopped up from the sofa she had been sitting on. Jonathan looked at the two unconscious hunters on the floor and raised an eyebrow.<p>

"You're late," Emerald remarked.

"I was getting the things ready." Jonathan said.

"Oh, are we going somewhere?"

Jonathan smiled. "Las Vegas. We're going to have a little… fun." He then turned and started walking back downstairs.

"It had better be better than the last time." Emerald muttered following, slamming the door shut behind her.

"Oh it will be," Jonathan promised with crooked smile. "I assure you, it will be."

**Just in case those last two parts were confusing, it was just a flashback before Jonathan and Emerald went and kidnapped Hannah and Rashel.**

**Also, sorry about the wait. You know how life is!**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	30. Thirty

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Monster

Storm didn't know what to say to this. He was speechless. His innocent, beautiful orchid had turned into deadly, poisonous nightshade.

Emerald's eyes shifted from Storm to Thierry and her smile grew wider.

"Lord Thierry," she drawled. "How's Hannah doing? Oh, wait—" She broke off chuckling.

Thierry growled and walked toward Emerald, grabbing a fistful of her hair. "You lay _one_ finger on Hannah and I swear, I will—"

"What?" Emerald interrupted, still smiling like she wasn't at all bothered by the predicament she was in. "You'll what, Thierry? Kill me? But you made promise to Hannah, remember?"

Thierry gritted his teeth but let go of her hair and took a step back.

"But I didn't." Quinn snarled coming forward his hand clenched tightly into a fist.

Emerald threw her head back and laughed and for a scary moment Storm thought that Emerald looked exactly like her mother, Trinity.

"Oh, how naïve that thought is." she sighed after she had stopped laughing. "If you killed me now, though, you'd never find Hannah, or your dear Rashel. Isn't that right, John?"

Quinn's fist shot out hitting Emerald so hard that blood spattered. Even with an open lip, Emerald chuckled, her hair falling into her face in a mental hospital kind of way. It was like she didn't feel the pain, like she was made from stone or marble. That or she enjoyed others pain and anger. Or maybe even both.

"She's right," Storm murmured through unmoving lips. His face was stricken. "She's our only chance if we want to find Hannah and Rashel alive." he continued.

"I'm sure there are others working for him—" Thierry started.

"No, I don't think so." Storm interrupted Lord Thierry bravely, the Reaper coming out. Storm's face hardened and he got control of his torrent of emotions. "Not for something like this. Even if they had workers, they'd never make such an amateur mistake."

Emerald smiled turning her gaze back on Storm. "You know me so well."

"Get her out of here." Thierry ordered quietly. Immediately the two holding her started dragging her away.

"You'll never get anything out of me!" she started calling. "You will never see your precious soulmates again!"

"Get her out of here!" Thierry growled.

The two vampires struggled to pull her away as she continued yelling threats about what Jonathan would do to Hannah and Rashel. But finally her screaming faded and stopped.

"We should just kill her now, Lord Thierry." Quinn said his voice tight with anger.

"No," Thierry snapped harshly. "Storm is right—"

"Storm? Storm, that girl's soulmate? Someone who could be working with her and Jonathan?" Quinn asked incredulously. "No way. I don't trust her! I don't trust him!"

"_Just_ because I'm her soulmate _doesn't_ mean that I'm working with them." Storm spat with contained fury. "You don't know me and I suggest that you _think_ before you go judging people by who they know."

Quinn bared his fangs; his eyes surging from his usually pitch black to silver and walked forward getting into Storm's face. "Don't you dare tell me what to do!" he snarled.

Storms bared his own fangs and hissed at Quinn but before a brawl could break out the two of them were thrown back, to each corner of the foyer. Thierry stood in the middle, looking back and forth between the two, his dark eyes serious.

"Now is not the time to turn on each other." Thierry said in a low voice. He looked over at Quinn. "We don't have a choice. If we want to get Hannah and Rashel back safely we have to trust Storm." Then he turned his gaze onto Storm. "I'm giving you three days to get a location out of her and if she doesn't talk then we're switching to more severe tactics."

With that Thierry turned and started up the stairs. With a huff, Quinn stood up and followed, glaring down at Storm on the way.

* * *

><p>They had her tied up in one of Thierry's many rooms in his giant mansion. It wasn't exactly a cell or dungeon, or whatever they call them these days. The room was bare, except for a wooden pillar in the very middle of the room: the thing Emerald was tied to.<p>

Her arms had been pulled behind her back, her wrist bound tightly with thick bast rope. Starting at the shoulders they had tied her to the pillar, the rope criss-crossing across her body all the way down to her ankles, keeping her completely immobile. If she moved even a faction of an inch the rope would scourge her skin, creating angry, red welts.

Storm entered quietly and stood, leaning against the door. He kept his eyes to the floor, not wanting to meet Emerald's eyes. He didn't think he could bear looking into those bottomless, pitiless eyes again.

"They don't do things half-way here, do they?" Emerald asked shifting uncomfortably, the rope digging into her wrists and scraping her arms.

Storm didn't answer; keeping his eyes to the floor.

"So I assume this is because you're not happy to see me, then." Emerald continued.

Storm finally looked up at Emerald, her gaze locking onto his.

"I wanted to apologize," he said quietly.

Emerald smiled and tittered. "For what? Why are you sorry?"

Storm looked disbelievingly at Emerald. "For… for what?" he asked his voice a whisper. "For… for what happened to you. For… for what you've become."

Emerald's eyebrows furrowed. "You make it sound like becoming a vampire is a bad thing."

Storm walked toward her. "You said you didn't want to ever become a vampire, Emerald! Now you are one and it's all my fault. I'm sorry."

Emerald shrugged. "You don't have to apologize. I'm perfectly happy being a vampire. I never thought it'd be so great to be on the other side of the hunt. It's an amazing feeling." Her eyes became wistful.

"Why are you doing this?" Storm choked. "What do you gain from kidnapping Hannah and Rashel?"

Emerald smiled her eyes twinkling in a corrupt way. "Does there always need to be a reason?" She shrugged. "Just to have a little fun in the middle of the desert."

"Emerald, innocent people are going to get hurt because of you and your father! How could you ever live with yourself if they were to die?" Storm exploded. "Where is the Emerald I know? Because this is _not_ her!"

"She's gone," Emerald answered, "dead."

Storm's eyes widened and the breath came whooshing out of him. "It's because we broke up, isn't it?" Emerald didn't answer but the smile dropped and her eyes hardened becoming solid emeralds and Storm took that as a yes. "You're a hypocrite, you know that? Running away from your problems by shutting down and becoming just like your parents."

"You know what they say: the apple never falls far from the tree. I know I'm a hypocrite. So is everyone else. We've all been hypocrites in our lives once or twice." she told him evenly. "But I know how they felt. I knew the pain that they were going through and I finally understood why they gave in."

"Emerald, I will always love you." Storm whispered desperately, coming up and putting his hands on her arms. None of this affected her like it usually would. Her heart had been coated in a thick layer of stone. "But you have to understand where I was coming from. I couldn't keep living like that. I couldn't stand you putting your life in danger for others. It was like you didn't even consider how your friends felt! How _I_ felt, and it just… it just infuriated me! You didn't care about your friends! You didn't care about _me_!"

"I did, Storm. I did understand where you were coming from. Why do you think I came to apologize to you?" For the first time since Storm had seen Emerald as a vampire, it seemed like something other than coldness and acid had seeped into her tone. "But you pushed me away and that… was the hardest, most painful thing I have ever gone through. _You will never know how much I hurt that day_. I hit rock bottom. Lo-and-behold my father finds me; lo-and-behold _he's_ my saving grace."

Storm and Emerald looked at each other for a long moment, when suddenly Storm leaned down, pressing his lips roughly against hers, all his frustration, anger, sadness, and pain coming through. One of his hands cupped her face, while the other was buried in her thick, silky hair. Emerald kissed him back with just as much force, wincing every single time her arms jerked forward, meeting resistance of the wood-based rope.

It was a few seconds of kissing him did Emerald realize what was happening. She pulled away and turned her head to the side, chuckling.

"You are so full of it." she spat turning her head back to glare at him, though that smile was still on her face. "You think you can get me to give up the location of Thierry and Quinn's beloved soulmates by seducing me. By getting me to think you do love me. Very clever, but I won't fall for it." By the end, Emerald's jaw had clenched shut and her eyes had had frozen over once again.

Storm stepped back appalled at what he'd just done. He really hadn't meant to force himself on her like that. It was crude and ungentlemanly.

Storm shook his head and stepped even closer. "No, that's not what I meant to do, Emerald." he said. "I-I… I don't know what came over me. I… I _do_ love you. I've always loved you, Emerald. You've got to believe me." he pled.

"You're a good liar, I'll give you that." Emerald said.

Storm hissed. "I'm not lying! Why won't you just believe me?"

"You might as well just give it up and let them come torture me, because you're not getting a single coordinate from me."

"I won't give up, Emerald. I _will_ keep fighting." Storm threatened.

Emerald smiled at this. "The Emerald you knew it dead."

* * *

><p>"Just give me a few more days, Lord Thierry," Storm bargained. "I'm getting through to her, I can feel it. I just need a few more days."<p>

Quinn stood ready to argue against that, but Thierry held his hand up, stopping him.

"I'm sorry Storm but I cannot afford to wait a few more days. I gave you three and you have failed to get so much as a street. This is clearly not working. We _must_ switch methods." Thierry told Storm firmly.

Storm stood as ell. "Please, at least another few hours—"

"You got your chance already, Kallahan." Quinn interrupted. "I will not risk Rashel's life for Emerald's."

"She is still my soulmate, Quinn. I can't just stand around and watch her suffer." Storm argued.

"If I'm not mistaken, you guys broke up. Soulmates, please, I couldn't even call what you guys have an acquaintanceship." Quinn scoffed. "Besides if you really think about it, you're the one who started all of this."

Storm's jaw was taut, his electric blue eyes blazing. "I didn't—"

"You broke her heart." he paused. "You broke your soulmate's heart." With those last words Quinn exited the room, leaving Storm still standing there stunned at first. But when Quinn's words finally resonated with him he realized the painful truth.

Storm exited without another word and went back to his room. He sat on the edge of his bed, in complete darkness wallowing in self-hatred, regret, aguish.

Quinn had been absolutely right. He'd ripped Emerald's heart out, he'd crushed her spirit. Which in turn made him feel as if his own heart had been taken, as if his own soul was slowly being crushed right now.

His will to fight this battle was depleting rapidly. If it weren't for the fact that Storm felt there was a tiny shred of hope left for Emerald, he would've given in completely.

The next few days were absolute torture for Storm. Lord Thierry wouldn't let him go see Emerald at all. But that was probably just as well because, like Thierry had stated, they'd resorted to much harsher tactics. Thierry didn't strike Storm as that kind of type, but I guess if your soulmate was on the line you'd do anything to save them. Storm knew he'd do anything for Emerald, even in her current… state.

As of now though, he really couldn't do anything. Arguing wasn't going to do them any good and if Storm really wanted Emerald freed from what they were doing he'd probably end up killing Thierry's workers, which wasn't the best idea right now.

After three days—each day feeling like an eternity had passed—of being locked up in his room, Storm finally stepped out, ready to talk to Thierry. It was only fair that he get another chance after three days. Storm had been thinking about this day and night; tossing and turning in his bed as he lay there unable to get to sleep when the sun had left their grace. Nightmares haunted his mind when he did managed to get to sleep, Emerald's screams echoing in his head throughout this never-ending darkness that was slowly engulfing him into its clutches.

Storm had also been thinking about his argument. What he'd say to Thierry to convince him to let him try at least one more time; how he'd say it (in a calm, polite tone); and how he'd respond to what Thierry might say. Of course, who knows how well Storm would actually take this. He could end up yelling at Thierry if it started taking a turn for the worst.

Even so, Storm had to try. He wasn't going to give up on Emerald. He couldn't. He felt responsible for doing this to her. Sure it was her decision, but he felt like he'd played an unwilling, unintentional part in her decision.

"Lord Thierry, I'd like to request that I take Emerald for a few more days." Storm said in the calm voice he'd imagined after he had gotten permission to enter. "This tactic, obviously, isn't working either."

"Yours didn't the first time, what makes you think that it will now?" Thierry countered.

"What other suggestions do you have?" Storm asked meeting Thierry's dark eyes challengingly. "You can't kill her. I'm telling you only she and Jonathan know where Hannah and Rashel are. And Jonathan is smart enough that he's not going to go out looking for Emerald. _You won't find them_. Just let me try again. I really think it'll work."

"You still haven't told me why, Storm." Thierry stated.

Storm's hands balled into fists. He'd tried his hardest to not think about what they'd done to Emerald, but now it looked like he didn't have a choice. "You've worn her down, Lord Thierry. I think I can get through to her if you'll just let me try. You've had your chance, it's my turn again. But… but I need you to let me take her into my room, at least."

"No, I cannot risk her being out of that room. I will not risk anyone else's lives. I'm letting you have another chance, but that is where I draw the line." Thierry said as soon as the words were out of Storm's mouth.

"Sir, I know that it's risky, but how can you expect me to get through to her with her tied up like that. She's already done enough suffering." Storm argued trying to keep his voice level. "Do you want to get Hannah and Rashel back, or not?" he finally asked quietly hoping he'd hadn't gone _too _far.

Thierry thought about this for a long time but finally looked back at Storm and nodded once. "Okay, but I'm only giving you one day." Storm started to object that one day was way too short, but Thierry quickly continued. "I really don't have time for all of this. I _need_ to find Hannah." His voice became desperate as he said those last two sentences.

Storm struggled to repress the urge to start arguing again. "I know." He managed to choke out. "Thank you." Storm said before quickly heading down to the room Emerald was being kept.

He quickly slipped past the two guards on either side of the door and went inside, keeping his eyes trained on the ground, preparing himself for the state that Emerald might be in. The room reeked of blood, making Storm gag, his eyes water.

Gritting his teeth and taking a deep breath, he looked up. It wasn't bad in the dark and from afar. Her short-sleeved, white blouse was ripped and cut. A thick, black liquid ate at the white of her shirt. Emerald's head was turned to one side, her hair creating a thick, raven-black veil in front of her face. She seemed to be sleeping… or something of that nature.

Storm swallowed hard and slowly walked forward pulling his switchblade out. As he came around to Emerald's left side, getting ready to cut the ropes binding her, she seemed to sense him. Her eyes opened, glowing in the darkness of the windowless room. When she spotted him her lips pulled back as her canines elongated into fine points, her eyes flashed silver and her expression was that of animosity and hatred. A low, slow growl rumbled from deep within her throat.

It would seem that she had reverted to her completely primal side to deal with the pain.

Storm froze and looked at Emerald with solemn eyes.

"Emerald," he said quietly. "It's just me. It's just Storm." She hissed. "I'm not going to hurt you." he coaxed. "I'm just going to cut the ropes." Emerald's face stayed the same. Storm stepped closer to her against his better judgment. "I promise I won't hurt you." he said firmly, pronouncing every word carefully.

They stared at each other for a moment before Emerald finally relaxed, her eyes reverting back to emerald green, her teeth shrinking back to normal, her shoulders slumping. Emerald's eyebrows furrowed in that of pain and suffering and she turned her head away.

Storm let out a breath and went to cut the ropes around her wrists and then the ropes holding her to the pillar. As soon as the ropes fell away, Emerald stepped away from the pillar, walking forward a little with a slight limp. Storm went to help her but she shoved his hand away and continued to walk forward.

Storm quickly walked ahead of her and opened the door. The two guards that were standing in front of the door followed them as they walked back to Storm's room. Coincidentally as they entered the foyer and were heading in the direction of the stairs, Quinn was descending them. Emerald spotted him and she changed in the blink of an eye, crouching low and snarling.

The guards behind her quickly grabbed her arms and held her back as Quinn continued down the stairs. Storm fought to keep his feet planted to the ground. Getting into a fight with Quinn now would make things worse than they already were.

As Storm stood a few feet in front of the guards and a growling Emerald with contained fury, Quinn walked right up to Emerald, his eyes blacker than a black hole, his expression flaring with rage. He pulled out a stake, putting his free hand on Emerald's shoulder right before shoving the stake into her, right beneath her ribcage. Storm ground his teeth and looked away not being able to bear the sight.

"That's for Rashel you sick monster." Quinn hissed in her ear, pulling the stake out and walking away.

Emerald jerked her arms out of the guards' grip and continued forward like nothing had happened. But she was breathing harder and her limp had become more pronounced. Storm hovered behind her, ready to catch her if she collapsed because she was looking sickly pale and she walked like she could barely hold herself up. However that wasn't necessary because she made it all the way to his room.

Emerald entered and Storm quickly followed, the two guards now situating themselves outside his own door. That majorly sucked.

With a sigh of resignation and the feeling of failure already, Storm closed the door. He turned around just in time to catch Emerald before she hit the ground. Her breath was shallow and up close her wounds looked worse than Storm had originally assessed. He'd never seen her like this before, not even when she had dislocated her shoulder. It absolutely broke his heart to see her in such a state.

With another sigh he picked her up into his arms and went to gently lay her down on the bed. Then he quickly went to get a bowl of ice cold water and a washcloth. It wasn't going to do much and in this case he _couldn't_ really do much, but he felt obligated to at least clean the wounds as best he could.

Storm pulled up a chair to the bed and set the bowl of cold water on the bedside table before dipping the cloth in, getting it nice and saturated and wringing it out. He carefully pulled back some of Emerald's torn blouse and pressed the cloth to one of her cuts. There was a sharp intake of breath before he saw a flash of white—his wrist was now in an iron vice.

His jaw locking shut, his eyes strayed up to Emerald's face. Her lips were pulled back a snarl and her eyes glowed silver.

"I'm helping you." he told her quietly, through his clenched teeth. Her grip on his wrist didn't lessen. "I already told you, _I'm-not-going-to-hurt-you._"

There was another moment of tense silence before Emerald's hand receded and he let her head fall back onto the pillow, her eyes closing, her chest heaving in pain.

Storm let out a breath and continued to gently clean the blood around her cuts and stabs. This was going to the hardest 24 hours of his entire life.

**Sorry about the delay. I know this was kind of filler and… choppy, but I hope you enjoyed anyway!**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	31. Thirty One

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: This chapter is based off Demi Lovato's song, "Got Dynamite". Hope you enjoy!**

Dynamite

Emerald awoke, feeling stronger now. The curtains were closed, no light leaking through. She glanced at the clock: 8am. She slowly sat up and looked around her mind a bit fuzzy from last night. Her mind did something funny whenever a traumatizing event occurred, especially being tortured for three days, it blended together into one big mass of watery thoughts just out of reach and blurry memories of what she had been seeing at the time.

But as she thought about it, last night became clearer. She remembered Storm…. Emerald's eyes darted around the room quicker and came to a stop next to the bed she was currently lying on. There he was, sitting in a chair fast asleep. She stared at him curiously, tilted her head slightly to one side. She couldn't wrap her mind around it. Why was he so bent on saving her? He could've easily killed her whilst she slept, yet he hadn't. He'd… he'd taken care of her. Nurtured her. Cleaned her wounds. And she just couldn't understand why he was so…caring, and soft.

She'd done nothing but hurt him and here he sat asleep where she last remembered him, the bowl of cold water still on the nightstand, the cloth hanging over the rim. Emerald's eyebrows knitted together in frustration and slight anger and she exhaled.

Storm's eyes fluttered open revealing those bright, wide, wondrous blue eyes. For a moment Emerald got caught up in them, leaving her feeling dizzy and breathless. She quickly snapped out of her trance and shook herself mentally. No, it had all been a lie. He was only doing this because Thierry and Quinn wanted their soulmates back. As soon as she gave her father's position away she'd have a stake sticking out of her chest before she had time to say "vampire".

That was right. She was not going to fall for his tricks. She had to admit, though, they were good ones. Using love and feelings to get to her. It didn't seem fair, but… all was fair in love and war. And yet again, it was both. (It occurred to Emerald that it was always going to be both with Storm.)

"How are you feeling?" Storm asked straightening up in his chair.

"Why do you care?" Emerald snapped, throwing her legs off the bed. Storm sighed and looked at her with sad, wary eyes. She quickly diverted her gaze from his and onto something else in the room.

"Because I love you, Emerald." Storm stated quietly yet again. "How many times will I have to tell you before you believe me?"

"No amount of times you say that you love me will ever make me believe you." Emerald told him, meeting his gaze again.

"I don't believe that." Storm replied softly.

Emerald's anger flared up like a firestorm. "Why are you even doing this?" she asked her voice low and leveled, yet the amount of anger coming through was astonishing. "Why not just let them kill me. I told you before and I'll tell you again, I'm not going to tell you anything."

Storm stood. "I'm not going to believe that." he repeated.

"Why not?"

"I love you, Emerald. I can't live without you. I've already let you go once and that has been the most agonizing feeling of my entire existence, and I'm not ready to do that again." Storm came up and grasped her bare arms. Emerald jumped at this sudden contact. She felt something stir deep within her, something pick at the stone around her heart… it was a very disconcerting feeling. "You broke the bond, did you know that?" Storm asked his breath gently blowing into her face. "And ever since then I have felt so… _hollow_ and so _alone_. And I just don't want to feel that anymore." By now his voice had become a whisper.

Storm leaned in closer. "I'm not going to ever stop until I find the Emerald I know. I know she's in there somewhere." he murmured.

Emerald's mind was racing. For a scary second she thought he was going to kiss her, but then he did something totally unexpected, it caught her completely off guard: he bit her. He turned her head and sunk his teeth into her neck.

She should've pushed him away. She could've easily right then. It wouldn't have been very hard. So why wasn't she? If she could, why wasn't she? Was it because she actually liked the way that Storm held her? (The only person in her life to hold her in such a tender way.) Was it because she actually liked how his hands were firm and strong, but soft and warm against her arms? (The only person in her life to make her ever feel this way.)

It was scary to think about. Even with the hardened cement around her heart, these thoughts swirled through her conscious mind right before she felt it being split open. The bed, the room, fell away and there they were again. Two souls free of walls, of bindings, of shields. Minds connected. Souls intertwined.

But there was a darkness that loomed over Emerald's mind. It was like a cave, dark and cold and barren. Inside were rocks, obsidian rocks long and pointed, winking at Storm every time he passed, the faint glow of Storm's own soul the only light. And even though they were as black as deep space, they clearly reflected all of the recent events that had taken place in Emerald's life. Most of them were something of the norm: hunting humans. Then it was the killing of those five hunters which wasn't as pleasant, but Storm had killed his own fair share of hunters when he had been a bloodthirsty, revenge-seeker himself.

None of things compared to what Emerald was feeling then, what she felt now. There was no guilt, there was no remorse, there was no shame. She'd done this in cold blood.

_I told you: you can't save me. I'm too deep now. I know you can see it._

Storm was about to respond that there was hope for everybody when a memory hit him full force. The mere sight of it had Storm reeling, pure horror and shock and disgust washed over him. And suddenly, physically, Storm was thrown back, onto the floor, away from Emerald, all the way to the wall, right beneath one of the windows. He could feel the bond between them again but it wasn't the same. Shadows smothered the silver, swirling and pulsing with… evil.

Storm gasped and grasped at the front of his shirt, the feeling of being suffocated overwhelming him. It wasn't a bond anymore, it restricted him, in restrained him; it was like a leash or a cage.

He looked up at Emerald who had gone back to her scary, ruthless queen look. She glared down at him with contempt and stood as Storm continued to gasp. It was like a hand had enclosed around his heart, preventing it from expanding and contracting fully. The feeling of air deprivation wasn't the most pleasant thing, but at the moment Storm was slightly more worried about Emerald than anything else. Something had totally changed in her, just now, and Storm had never seen this side from her.

"How does it feel to be connected to a monster?" she asked quietly.

"You're not… a… monster." Storm gasped, struggling to his feet, but needing to lean heavily against the windowsill.

Emerald shook her head. "You just don't give up, do you?" she asked. "You're very stubborn. Sometimes you just have to know when to let go, give up."

The pressure seemed to increase, almost bringing Storm to his knees. His breath hissed through his tightly clenched teeth and his hands fisted.

"You mean… like you did?" Storm asked looking over at Emerald through the corner's of his eyes.

"I've found it easier than fighting it all." she told him slowly coming forward. "It's just so much easier, like when you step out of a sauna." She took a deep breath to emphasize her point. "The clean, fresh air. The weight off your chest. The feeling of just breathing easier. It's wonderful, you know."

Emerald took another step closer and reached up to touch Storm's temple, who flinched and pulled away slightly. Emerald ran her index finger down the side of his face.

"Wouldn't you like to make it all go away?" she asked in a whisper. "All it takes is… a single… touch." As she said this she just barely touched Storm's temple again with her middle finger and Storm collapsed, the darkness closing in.

* * *

><p>When Storm awoke again he was lying on the bed. The only noise there was the thudding of his heart in his ears. And when he went to sit up, he met resistance. Looking around he realized that his arms had been pulled up over his head. Storm pulled and looked up, a frustrated growl escaping his lips.<p>

It would seem while he'd been out, Emerald had tied his wrists, looping the rope through one of the wrought iron bars that was part of the headboard. She must've been a girl scout at one point or another because the knots were tight and looked intricate. Anytime Storm wriggled his wrists, though, the course rope seemed to tighten around his wrists, rubbing against his skin irritably.

"Having fun?" Emerald's voice came from the end of the bed. She was leaning up against the wall on the right side of the bed, where the windows were.

"How long have I been out?" Storm asked. Smiling, Emerald pushed away from the wall and walked over to him.

"About a few minutes." She sighed heavily. "I was hoping longer…" Her bottom lip jutted out in a pout before her eyes narrowed. "But you're stronger than I had planned." She climbed up onto the bed and straddled Storm. "But that doesn't matter. Everyone has a weakness." Emerald pulled out a switchblade, his switchblade. "You don't mind if I borrow this, do you?"

"Emerald, what are you doing?" Storm groaned. "Is this really necessary?"

She smiled and leaned in close, dragging the cold blade across Storm's forehead, brushing some of his hair out of his eyes.

"I just have a few questions before the end. You know… last requests, I suppose you could call them." she told him.

"You know I'd answer any questions you had without all of…" Storm glanced up at his bound wrists before looking back at Emerald. "This."

Emerald shook her head and clicked her tongue. "But would you answer them truthfully, is the question."

"You know I would, Emerald." Storm told her meeting her eyes.

Emerald pulled back, putting a hand on Storm's chest before she brought the blade down and made a good sized cut across his cheek. It was shallow and still bled but healed almost as quickly as she had made the cut. Not breaking her gaze with Storm's, she brought the blade up to her lips and ran her tongue across the knife, getting the blood.

"Don't lie to me, Storm." Emerald warned him.

"I'm not lying to you." Storm insisted.

Emerald's jaw worked as she plunged the blade into Storm's side. His face contorted into a mask of pain and he let out a hiss. His whole body tensed.

"You know, a famous author once said: 'Only enemies speak the truth; friends and lovers lie endlessly, caught in the web of duty'." She quoted slowly pulling the knife out of Storm's side. "You think it's your duty, don't you?" she asked, leaning in close again, to Storm who was now breathing hard. "To just lie over and over to _protect_ your loved ones. To keep them _safe_. But what is safe. All you're keeping them from is the truth and when the truth finally comes it only hurts more. The troubles you face are only tenfold. What does lying ever do?"

"And you haven't done it before either?" Storm snarled, his chest still heaving.

"Haven't we been over this before?" Emerald asked, pulling back and sighing exasperated. "I know I'm a hypocrite. We all are sometime or another. All I'm saying is now… now you don't have to lie to me anymore. I can handle the truth."

Storm opened his mouth ready to reply to this when suddenly his cell phone rang from the night stand. Emerald looked over at it for a moment before looking back at Storm with a pencil-thin eyebrow raised.

"It's… it's probably my dad. Just… just cut one of my hands loose at least, so I can answer it." Storm explained.

Emerald stared at him for a moment before reaching over and picking it up, checking the caller id just to make sure.

"Emerald—" Storm started, breaking off when she answered it.

"Storm's phone, you're speaking to Emerald." she answered in an overly saturated sweet voice.

"_Emerald,_" Adrian's voice was shocked. "_I wasn't expecting you to pick up. I… I thought you were in New York._"

"Oh, I was, but I left to come see Storm." she said looking down at Storm. He was glaring at her and opened his mouth ready to yell at her but she brought the knife forward and brushed it over his lips, cautioning him to keep quiet.

"_Is he there? May I speak with him?_" Adrian questioned.

A smile pulled at the edge of Emerald's lips. "He's a little… tied up at the moment." Storm rolled his eyes.

"_Can he take a quick break? I'd really like to talk to _him_._" Adrian elaborated.

Emerald looked down at Storm for a moment. "I'll see what I can do, Mr. Kallahan." She then pulled the phone away and put it on mute for a moment. "Tsk, tsk, Storm, you haven't told you father yet, have you?" she asked shaking her head in disapproval.

"I didn't want him to worry about me anymore than he already does." Storm muttered. "Now, give me the phone, please."

Emerald un-muted the phone and put it up to Storm's ear.

"Hey, Dad," he said a little dryly.

"_Is everything all right?_" Adrian asked.

Storm pursed his lips and looked up at Emerald through narrowed eyes. "Yeah, just peachy."

"_Are you sure?_" his father queried noting the tone of his voice.

"Yes, I am. I'm just… really busy at the moment. I just want you to know that I'm okay. How are things going down there?"

"Oh, they're the same. Oh, uh, Carter and Sky have been over a few times. But nothing new to report down here."

"All right, well I'll call you later tonight, okay. We can talk more. Love you, Dad."

"Love you, too. Talk to you soon."

Emerald pulled the phone away and pressed the END button before setting it back down on the night stand. Before she could do anything else, however, there was a knock on the door. Emerald looked over at it and cursed. She quickly slipped off the bed and cut the ropes binding Storm to the headboard.

"Come in," Storm called pulling the ropes away from his wrists and quickly kicking them underneath the bed. He'd have to ask how she'd gotten hold of the bast rope in the few minutes he'd been out… if she hadn't been lying to him about that.

The door opened, letting light flood into the room.

It was two of Thierry's workers. Storm was off the bed and standing protectively in front of Emerald in a flash. He knew what they were here for and he wasn't going to let them take her.

And it was apparent that they weren't going to let her slip out of their grasp. They came inside the way a river would flow. Granted there were only four, but suddenly they were inside, surrounding Storm and Emerald.

"Just let them take me." Emerald said calmly.

"No." Storm was adamant. "They'll kill you, I can't." he whispered turning to face her.

She stared evenly back showing no sign of any emotion. "You and I both know that. It's the inevitable, Storm. And, let's face it, you can't stop the inevitable."

With those words two of Thierry's workers came forward, pulling Emerald's arms behind her back. The other two monitored Storm, making sure he wasn't about to lunge or make any stupid moves. Storm stayed quiet like a good little boy… that is until the door closed. As soon as it did he dashed out the room and quickly went to Thierry's study. As luck would have it he was in there, looking like he was waiting for Storm.

"I will not allow this, Thierry." Storm growled as soon as he entered the room. "You cannot take my soulmate away from me."

Thierry stood calmly, meeting Storm's fiery gaze with his own cool one. "She is a danger to the people out there, my people, the Daybreakers, and herself. It would be wise and safer if she were gone for good."

"Thierry this seems a little extreme. There are plenty of vampires out there in the world that kill for fun. That hunt and torture humans, or otherwise, for fun. I don't see why Emerald is so different." Storm snarled, unable to contain his anger now. He was done conforming to the house rules. He was done bowing down to Lord Thierry. It was about time he got up off his knees. This was his soulmate's life that was on the line. If she died then so would he.

"Do you want to know why I treat her so differently?" Thierry asked in a deadly quiet voice. "Her father came in here and killed five of my workers. Now, I don't take that lightly."

"So, what? You take it out on his daughter instead? That doesn't seem fair! How do you know that she's the same as her father?"

"Are you blind?" Thierry snapped. "She kidnapped Hannah and Rashel _with_ her father! Nothing like her father? You must be joking."

"What would you do if it were Hannah?" Storm asked quietly.

"Hannah would never—" Thierry started his voice tight.

"_Just… theoretically_—just theoretically, what if it were Hannah about to be killed? What would you do?"

This seemed to strike a cord with Thierry. Whatever Thierry was about to say died in his throat as he considered what Storm had just told him. Finally he looked up.

"Fine. I don't want her in this house anymore. I don't trust her. She will, undoubtedly, hurt someone else. And if she _does_ harm anyone else, anyone at all, it's on your shoulders." he informed before exiting his study with Storm following closely behind.

* * *

><p>They held Emerald by her arms, one of Thierry's workers holding each of her arms. They'd forced her to her knees and now another one of his workers was coming forward with a stake in her hand. Right before she had the chance to even raise her hand to stab Emerald the door to the room opened and Thierry stepped through.<p>

He said a few words and just like that Emerald was let go, thrown forward onto her hands and knees right at Storm's feet. The door slammed closed, leaving Emerald and Storm alone.

Emerald's hands furled into fists and she stood, her eyes blazing like Greek fire.

"Why are you doing this to me?" she asked her voice almost inaudible, containing the fury that was burning inside her. "Why do you keep trying to save me?" Without warning, her fist shot out, hitting Storm clear across the cheek. "Are you just stupid?" Emerald continued like nothing had just happened. In fact she threw another punch, but Storm let her, and hit the floor hard. "It's obvious they don't want me here." All the while, her voice stayed in the same quiet tone, which made it seem like she was all the more angry. "Why do you keep pushing?" This time she kicked him in the stomach, and with a heel like hers, it hurt like hell. "_They don't like me._" She kicked him again and he yelped. "They would _love it_ if I were dead." She reached down, grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him to his feet before shoving him against the wall roughly. "So, why not just let them kill me?"

"Because I love you, Emerald—" Storm broke off as Emerald threw him down to the ground and kicked him once again.

"Stop lying to me." she warned stepping back.

Storm struggled to push himself up with his elbow and looked up at Emerald, some of his wavy, dark cherry-wood hair falling into his eyes in such a way that made Emerald's breath catch.

This made her curse. How could he be getting to her? She had made sure to put up all the shields she could, to protect her from any more of this heart break, this gut-wrenching, head-splitting pain that threatened to consume and overwhelm every fiber of her being.

"I… have… always loved you, Emerald." Storm told her in a soft voice, meeting her eyes. He let that sink in before slowly standing up. "Even now," he started taking a cautious step forward. Emerald mirrored, taking her own step back. "I still love you. Even after everything you've done."

"You lie." Emerald snarled through her teeth, continuing to back up away from Storm even though he wasn't advancing.

"You're right, Emerald," Storm finally said, ignoring how her eyes widened and through the cord he felt a pang. At least he was finally getting through to her. "I did lie." he told her as he slowly started to walk forward. "I lied when I said that we had broken up. I lied when I said that your apology didn't mean anything would change between us. But I lied because I was protecting myself. I was tired of getting hurt." Emerald made no movements as Storm came closer and closer until they were standing so close she could feel every time his heart beat, hitting her like a hammer.

"In truth, I love you. I've always loved you." Storm reached up and gently ran his fingers down the side of her face, tracing her jaw. "I know I don't say it a lot, but you are truly exquisite. You're eyes change color." He then stroked her hair. Emerald stood, frozen, pressed against the wall. "Your hair is as dark as night, but soft as a raven's feather and gleams with red and blue when hit with sunlight." Storm brought his hand forward and gently ran his thumb over Emerald's bottom lip. "Your lips are full and soft and red just as a rose petal.

"And I haven't even gotten to your personality. Strong, smart, witty, stubborn at times, independent. I could go on all day…" Storm smiled and looked down at Emerald, her eyes wide, her chest heaving, her lips slightly parted. "But I have a feeling you wouldn't want that."

It was like Storm had just rammed a chisel straight through her chest and now he was taking a hammer and slowly chipping away the marble surrounding her heart, piece by piece. A crack was going to form soon and as soon as that crack formed there wasn't going to be any trouble removing Emerald's cracked armor after that occurred.

Storm lifted his hands and cupped Emerald's face, letting some of his fingers tangle in her soft, delicate hair.

"Just say no." he murmured as he started slowly leaning forward. Emerald stood there, still frozen to the spot, unable to raise her arms to push him away; unable to move away from him, because honestly Storm wasn't keeping her trapped in that spot; unable to make her lips move and form that singular word.

And then Storm's lips were pressed against Emerald's and the marble fell away, crumbling and falling to the floor becoming piles of rubble, of what was left of her walls. Her motor skills seemed to return and she grasped the front of Storm's shirt as if to push him away, instead she pulled him closer to her and continued to kiss Storm.

Emerald felt naked, everything felt too open. She felt exposed without that wall protecting her. Thankfully the pain hadn't come back, but who knew how much longer that would last.

This seemed to snap Emerald out of her stupor. She pulled away and turned her head to the side. She needed to get out, she need to breathe, she needed to think straight without all this that acted as the perfect distraction.

Emerald looked up at Storm, they were both breathing hard. His blue eyes smoldered and Emerald's heart squeezed at his expression. Without a word she pushed past him and dashed out of the room. Careful not to get caught by any of Thierry's workers she sneaked around the house, treading lightly until she got to the front door. Half-way out though someone caught her arm.

She gasped and quickly turned to see who it was. The ever-changing eyes gave him away.

"Ash, wh-what do you want?" she asked, a little stunned that him of all people had caught her sneaking out.

"Going somewhere?" he asked his eyebrows quirking up.

"Out." Emerald told him slipping her arm out of his hand.

"I'll go with." He strode past with his lazy, cat-like gait and Emerald rolled her eyes, but followed, closing the door behind her.

A few blocks down the strip, Ash finally decided to talk to her. "So, you looked pretty frazzled on your way out. What's up?"

"Why do you care?" Emerald responded tartly.

Ash shrugged putting his hands in his pockets. "That is a good question."

Emerald stopped and Ash continued walking amiably a few feet before realizing Emerald wasn't walking next to him anymore. He stopped and swiveled around to face her.

"Is this one of Thierry's things again? Because, I don't think—"

"It's not one of Thierry's plots against you, don't worry." He rolled his golden-changing-to-yellow eyes at her. "I used to be like you are now." he told her. "I didn't care about human life. They were all vermin to me. Disgusting. Weak. Stupid. I'd done many, many things that I am not proud of. Twenty to your one, most likely."

"What's your point—" Emerald started, but Ash cut her off and continued on with his story. The people left a wide birth around Emerald and Ash's little bubble, always walking around them as if they felt that they were predators, hunters.

"Then I met Mary-Lynnette." he said. "She's everything to me now and I'd do anything for her. In fact, I'm, right now, making up for all the past things I've done. Sometimes I feel that it's not worth it, but just knowing that I'll be able to see Mare as a changed man, for the better; knowing that she'll be proud of what I've accomplished is what gives me that extra push to keep fighting. Because she's my soulmate and I'd do anything just to see her smile."

Emerald stared searchingly into Ash's dark blue, yellow-green, lavender eyes.

"Okay," she said. "I'll tell you where they are."

**Yikes, that took way longer than I wanted! But here it is.**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	32. Thirty Two

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Hysteria

Emerald looked out the window by the staircase. They had come back but Emerald watched with dismay as Thierry and Quinn stepped out of the car empty-handed. There was no Hannah or Rashel and Quinn looked absolutely murderous.

She grimaced. Oh boy, here it came. Emerald turned away from the window and started the down the stairs preparing herself for the worst.

The front door burst open just as Emerald set her foot down on the ground floor. Quinn was so angry Emerald couldn't make out what he was growling and snarling, it was just incomprehensible garble.

"_You._" Quinn growled turning to face her. Emerald stared at him coolly. He come forward one of his hands shooting out and wrapping around her throat. "I swear I will rip your heart out and shove it down your throat, you lying b—"

Emerald ripped his hand off her throat. "Don't touch me." she hissed angrily, baring her fangs, her eyes flashing silver. "_I didn't lie to you._ He moved. How was I supposed to know he moved them?"

Quinn gave a low growl, his whole body tense but shaking with his contained fury. He was just barely able to hold himself back. "Like I'm going to believe what you tell me anymore." he snarled in a low voice. "You know what I think? I think you're working with him, you've always been working with him, and you just led us on a wild goose chase. You told us the 'location' of where they were but not before you warned him so he could escape before we got there."

"You're wrong." Emerald told him coldly.

Quinn's hand lashed out again but Emerald grabbed his wrist before putting twisting his whole arm, putting him a wrist lock, and forcing him to the ground. Emerald put a foot on his back and whenever he tried to move she twisted his arm further.

"I'm not working for Jonathan any longer." Emerald told him. "Haven't you been listening to anything Storm has been telling you? He's not stupid. If one of his own were captured he cuts all ties, he knows that there's always a possibility that he'll get caught if one his own does—" Just then Emerald was thrown back, off of Quinn, to the other side of the room and into a wall.

She hit the floor and rolled onto her side, slightly disoriented, her hair falling slightly into her face just as Thierry walked up to her. He dark eyes were cold, almost looking as black as Quinn's. She glared back up at him, her glowing emerald eyes prominent against her veil of pitch black hair.

"I told you what _I_ know." she spat, slowly standing up.

"You knew," Thierry accused his eyes narrowing. "You knew that your father would move them, because you knew he'd know that we'd break you and you'd give away their location."

"You asked me for their location, I gave it to you, what more do you want from me?" Emerald asked crossing her arms over her chest. Thierry did something really out of character then: his hand shot out right next to Emerald's face, but he didn't hit her, he hit the wall behind, the wood cracking under all the pressure.

"I want my soulmate back." he growled pulling his hand out of the large hole he'd just created, turning swiftly and walking away.

* * *

><p>"I just don't know what they want from me!" Emerald raved to Storm up in his room. She had been at it for a good five minutes, pacing back and forth, getting really animated. "I know that they want their soulmates back, but they can't expect me to know all of this, to hand them over on a silver platter! I'm not some kind of slave to them! I gave them what they wanted! And they just won't listen to me and I just don't know—" Emerald broke off when she turned back around and saw Storm, sitting on the edge of the bed, staring out one of the windows.<p>

She sighed and went to go sit by him. His eyes were distant.

"I'm sorry," she said catching his attention. He blinked and turned his head to look at her. "I'm doing it again, aren't I?" she asked quietly tentatively putting her hands on one of his.

"Doing what?" he asked pulling his hand out of hers.

Emerald bit her lip and put her hands in her lap trying not to let that bother her. "Being insensitive." she elaborated.

"No," Storm lied. "You have a reason to be ranting, I don't blame you."

"If this is going to work, you're going to have to stop lying to me and yourself, Storm." Emerald told him bluntly. "I know this upsets you. I know I promised that I'd think more about your feelings and I'm not keeping up to that promise am I?"

"No." he finally said.

Emerald gave him a sad smile. "I'm sorry," she told him again.

Storm sighed and reached up to caress her face. "You're still different, Emerald." he whispered, his eyes becoming sad.

Emerald took the hand that was caressing her face and took it into both of her hands. "I don't know what you mean." she told him her eyes tightening, pulling her hands back into her lap.

"No lying, remember." Storm reminded her.

Emerald sighed and looked at Storm. "I don't want this to end," she whispered looking out one of the windows, shaking her head, "this feeling of… of being pain free. No regret, no guilt, no sadness, or anger, or… or anything.

"So, you're basically emotionless, then. No feelings at all." Storm said.

Emerald looked back at him. "No! That's not what I mean!" she snapped. "I mean… I'm no longer haunted by my demons. It's like they've just disappeared. I finally feel at peace."

"But it's those things, those feelings that make you who you are, Emerald. Without those you're not—"

"I'm not what, Storm?" Emerald challenged. "Not the same. Not the person that loves you. Not what?"

"Not you." Storm mumbled truthfully. "You can't keep running away from your problems, Emerald. That'll only make them worse than they already were."

Emerald stood up and went over one of the bench windows. "I'm not running away!" she snarled angrily, balling her hands into fists.

Emerald heard Storm stand as well, but he stayed near the bed. "You're scared, I get that, but—"

"I'm not scared either!" Emerald turned and stumbled back, sitting down on the bench for Storm had moved to standing inches away from her. "I'm not scared." she said again, more evenly.

"It's okay to scared, sometimes." Storm murmured coming closer, forcing Emerald further back on the bench, until her back was pressed up against the cool glass of the window. Storm climbed up onto the bench as well, leaning forward, putting his hands on the glass on either side of Emerald's head, trapping her completely. "We all have our demons." he said. "And there comes a time that we need to face them head on. If we run away they'll only multiply in intensity and be harder to deal with when you do face them."

Emerald's chest heaved and her eyes were wide. "I can't." she whispered, breathlessly. Her eyes squeezed shut as memories flashed behind her eyelids. She shook her head fiercely trying to dispel those images. "I can't. I can't!"

"Shh, Emerald, shh. It's okay. I'm here for you. I will always be here for you." Storm whispered, pressing his forehead against hers. "I love you."

A small smile pulled at the edge of Emerald's lips. "I love you too."

Storm's lips were soft and gentle against hers. Their kisses were slow. Emerald wished she could just snapshot this moment and hold it close to her heart forever, but suddenly she was engulfed in a blazing pain. Red, hot, fiery pain that shot from the core of her body and ignited her veins.

Emerald pulled away and gasped. She looked down to where the pain was the most immense and saw a stake sticking out of her chest. She looked back up and met Storm's emotionless, cold eyes. She shook her head in disbelief.

Not again.

Not now.

Her demons were already coming back to haunt her.

"No!" Emerald cried, bolting upright in bed.

Immediately she was engulfed in strong, warm arms. Though, she was scared, she didn't have the strength to pull away. Now reality was mixing with her dreams, she couldn't even tell when she was awake or asleep. She _knew_ she had that conversation with Storm, but afterward... afterward all she can think of is that searing, ripping pain. How would she ever be able to distinguish if she was awake or sleeping? Those dreams always felt so real and now her mind was melding them with actual events.

It just wasn't fair.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Storm asked quietly, as they sat there, clutching each other in the darkness; Storm gently, soothingly stroking Emerald's hair, keeping one arm firmly around her waist.

Emerald's lower lip trembled and tears flooded her eyes. "I'm losing it, completely, Storm." her voice just above a shaky whisper. "I-I can't even tell the difference between reality and dreams anymore. I don't know if this is all some convoluted dream right now and that any second you'll run a stake right through me. I just can't tell and-and it's driving me over the edge!"

Storm held her tighter to him. "Shh, shh," he cooed softly in her ear. "This is real. I'm here. I love you, I would never hurt you."

Silence followed his statement as Emerald tried to get her heart rate to slow and her shaking to stop.

"I can't," she mumbled, half-awake.

"Can't what?" Storm asked, still wide awake.

"I can't face them yet," she whispered pulling back to look up at him with half-open eyes. "I have to... to fine Jonathan first. I have to get Rashel and Hannah before he gets bored and—" Emerald broke off, blinking out of her haze. "I can't face my demons yet, because if I do, if I return to the way I was before all of this happened, he'll know. He'll know and Thierry and Quinn are going to lose their soulmates if that happens." she explained.

Storm pulled her back into his chest. "Well... when the time comes, I want you to know I'll be right there beside you, always." he promised.

A wane smile formed on Emerald's ruby lips and she closed her eyes.

* * *

><p>"How are you going to find him, though?" Storm asked the next morning. He was sitting on the bed. Emerald standing near one of the windows yet again, looking outside.<p>

"I don't know." Emerald told him truthfully. "Knowing him, I just need to get out there and he'll find me. I can't go looking for him." She turned to look at him for a moment before turning back to the window. It was like she was waiting, expecting something, or someone.

"Do you really think he's going to trust you?" Storm continued questioning.

Emerald turned to look at him again, her eyebrows furrowed together. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Storm walked over to her. "All I'm saying is that Jonathan is clearly not stupid. You've been here a long time and he'll put two and two together. I honestly don't think he'll think you haven't been, as he would probably put it, brainwashed."

"I have to try." Emerald said diverting her gaze. "I've already done enough damage here. I need to start fixing it."

Storm put his hands on her shoulders. "But I don't want you to get hurt in the process. If he finds out that you aren't the same as you were before, I'm afraid he'll kill you or hurt you and I just can't live with that. I've already lost you once, Emerald. I can't just stand by and lose you again." Emerald said nothing. "Do you honestly think that he'll believe the ruse?"

"Yes, of course." she answered looking back up at him.

"The truth, Emerald." Storm reminded her.

She closed her eyes and took a breath. "No." she finally whispered so low, Storm almost didn't catch it.

"Then why even do it all?" Storm burst stepping away a few feet and throwing his hands into the air. "If you know he's not going to believe you!"

"I have to try!" Emerald lashed back, her hands balling into fists. "Besides, _Lord Thierry_ and Quinn wouldn't have it any other way! Let's face it, Storm, they could care less about me and my sorry life. They'd be happy to risk my life for their soulmates any day."

"Only because they don't know Jonathan as well as you do. If they end up getting killed then all of it will be in vein." Storm argued.

"You're just defending them!" Emerald growled. "I know why they don't like me, besides the obvious. I know what my father did when he 'joined' the Daybreakers."

"That was the past, Emerald."

"Yeah, well, Thierry doesn't seem to realize that. Taking it out on me because I'm his daughter." she spat. "It makes me so angry! You know what? Why should I even have to set things right here, anyway? I don't owe him anything! He doesn't treat me with respect merely because I'm the daughter of someone he loathes." She had turned back to face the window yet another time.

"To be fair, Emerald, you did have that lapse—" Storm started before Emerald circled around away from the window to glare at him, her eyes turning to actual emeralds. When he didn't continue Emerald looked back out of the window and her heart turned to lead.

"Stay here." she ordered before dashing out of the room. Storm quickly went over to the window but didn't see what Emerald must've seen because nothing seemed out of the ordinary to him.

As soon as Emerald got to the railing, she jumped over, landing nimbly on the ground floor, the spot where Thierry had been not even a millisecond before, and threw herself forward, running quickly past Thierry and putting a hand on the door knob. They both looked at each other.

"Call of your people," she hissed quietly. "And _don't_ challenge, him"—Thierry's eyes flared but Emerald continued on in a steely calm voice—"he'll kill you and that won't do anything to help Hannah."

"Fine." he muttered before shoving Emerald out of the way and walking out, down the three steps, and a few feet down the sidewalk leading up to his giant mansion. "Fall back!" she heard Thierry order his workers. "Comb the house, make sure everyone inside is okay." A moment later about eight of his workers rushed inside, past Emerald who was currently hiding behind the beam between the open door on her right and the window on her left, her head tilted to the side, listening to every movement outside.

"Lord Thierry," Jonathan's voice drawled, followed by what sounded like the drop of a body. "Nice to see you again." Emerald could just see the smirk on his face.

"Emerald," She looked at the stairs and saw Storm coming down. "What—" She put one of her hands up in a gesture to stop, and brought a finger to her lips signaling silence. He stopped midsentence, but came forward anyway.

Storm looked down at Emerald, searching her eyes.

_ Jonathan._ She sent through the cord.

Storm took a step toward the door but Emerald gripped his arm and shook her head. _I don't want you going out there._ She urged, her hand tightening on his arm.

_Emerald, I have to help in any way I can._ He sent back.

Emerald shook her head again but her hand slid off her arm. She knew that he was going to go out there whether she liked it or not. Still, she _didn't_ like it and would attempt to prevent it however she could… however feeble her attempts would be. There was only so many things she could say or do without hurting him more than she already had, or without Jonathan noticing.

Storm started for the door again and Emerald turned toward him, opening her mouth. Before she could get anything out though, Storm stepped toward her and gently pressed his lips against her, silencing her with a kiss.

_I'll be okay._ He promised pulling away.

Emerald looked at him skeptically, biting her lip. Storm leaned down and gave her another quick kiss before walking outside. Emerald couldn't stand it anymore and turned to peek around the corner, to see what was going on. Jonathan stood a few feet away from the beginning of the walkway. Two bodies were lying on the ground at his feet, two of Thierry's workers. They had already mummified.

Jonathan hadn't seemed to notice Emerald yet, because he was too busy having a staring contest with Thierry. No words were being spoken.

Thierry stood where he had been a few minutes ago. Storm walked up to stand next to him. They exchanged a few words but it was too quiet, and Emerald couldn't make anything out of what they'd said.

"What do you want, Jonathan." Thierry called.

"I'm just passing by," Jonathan responded crossing his arms and taking a step forward, over the two bodies in front of him.

"Don't you dare come any closer!" Thierry growled, his hands balling into fists. "You've got a lot of gall, showing your face around here again."

Jonathan shrugged.

"What is it you want?" Thierry asked again. "You've already got my soulmate. What more do you think you can take from me?"

Jonathan laughed. "It's not something I'm taking from you, _Lord_ Thierry." Jonathan's eyes turned onto Storm, his smile stretching across his face almost inhumanly. "It's Storm."

Emerald's breath caught. _Don't do anything stupid. Don't do anything stupid._ She prayed silently, frozen to her spot, eyes glued on Storm's back.

"You're looking for Emerald, aren't you?" Storm finally asked his voice tight.

"You took the words right out of my mouth." says Jonathan.

Emerald stopped breathing altogether. She should just go with him now and save everyone trouble. But what did he want with her? It'd been such a long time since they'd captured her. It would've been less suspicious if she had just gone out to hunt and have him find her, not this way.

Suddenly her father's eyes flickered up and met hers. Emerald let out the breath she was holding and quickly spun around, hiding behind the beam again, trying to compose herself; closing her eyes and taking deep breaths. She had to make a convincing argument, so to speak. She needed to gain control of her emotions. Now was _so_ not the time to be freaking out and losing control.

"I know you're there, Emerald. Might as well come out now and save some time." her father called. Emerald wasn't ready though, she needed another good five seconds, at least. "All right, Emerald," Jonathan's voice came, making Emerald jump. His tone was very ominous. "I didn't want to do this, but you've left me no choice."

Emerald's eyes flew open, the feeling of something horrible pressing on her shoulders, weighing her down. She only had mere seconds, but those seconds felt like decades as she turned and looked out the door, that was still hanging wide open. Her eyes darted around, registering everything: Jonathan's position, still yards away from the front doors, the two bodies of Thierry's workers behind him, the sun beating down on the three, the breeze ruffling the grass and the boys' hair, and Storm and Thierry, also standing exactly as they were when Emerald had last seen them.

Except—

Emerald's eyes widened and she let out a gasp before lunging forward, throwing herself out the door, down the steps, and using the energy of her foot hitting the ground to push herself forward.

"Watch it!" she shouted, as her body flew through the air, toward the two boys, her hands outstretched shoving them, roughly out of the way. Not in the slightest ready for this, they fell to the concrete, just as the ground where they had previously been standing literally opened up, green vines shooting up through the hole and straight at Emerald. She couldn't hold back the piercing scream that escaped her lips as the vines snaked around her waist and stomach, catapulting her up at least thirty feet into the air.

**Yeah, I know, you probably hate me… because of how long it took to update and yet another cliffy (sorry, I just can't help myself!). But I had a horrible writers block… To be honest I still kind of do, but I pushed myself to get this out to you because you deserve that much. I hope you enjoyed! I _promise_ I'll update as soon as I possibly can.**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	33. Thirty Three

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

Confusion

The vines were a sickly shade of forest green, constricting themselves around Emerald waist and stomach, practically squeezing her to death.

They pulsed with evil, dark energy… like dark magic energy. Thierry and Storm still sat on the ground feet away from the trunk of vines holding Emerald up; too dumbfounded to really do much of anything at the moment. Neither Storm, Emerald, nor Thierry had seen anything like it before.

Jonathan came forward, arms crossed, to stand at the base between Thierry and Storm, tilting his head back to look up at Emerald.

"You never listen to you parents, do you?" he called up to her.

"We… may be blood… but we are _not_… family." Emerald choked struggling against her binds.

Jonathan shook his head and sighed. The vines flickered with a purple-ish lightning before the lightning shot up the trunk of the vines and hit Emerald. Her screams shattering the summer air, snapping Storm out of his daze. He blinked and stood up just as the electricity retreated.

"Storm, don't!" Emerald shouted down, knowing what he was going to do before he even knew.

Storm shook his head and opened his mouth about to reply to this but the words died in his throat as the vines retreated back into the ground, bringing Emerald with it. It only took Storm seconds to snap out of his daze this time.

"Emerald!" he shouted just the ground close completely, readjusting the sidewalk it had displaced, making it seem like nothing had ever been there in the first place.

Behind Storm and Thierry, who had finally composed himself and stood up, Jonathan laughed. Storm spun around and growled at him. "What did you do to her?" he demanded.

Jonathan simply smiled like he always does, but the ground next to him opened up, less violently than last time, though, and up from this spot, rose another trunk of vines, but this time Emerald was pinned to the trunk by other vines that wrapped around her body, her arms held above her head, some vines even tangled in her hair. Her eyes were closed, her head slack.

Storm snarled and took a step forward but Thierry quickly grabbed his arm, stopping him.

Still glaring murderously at Jonathan Storm spat, "Let go."

"This won't end well." Thierry responded in the same tone.

"Yes, _Lord_ Thierry, let him go." Jonathan antagonized. "Let's see what you're made of, Mister Kallahan."

Thierry's grip tightened on Storm's arm. "Storm, don't do this." he warned.

Storm gritted his teeth and tried to calm himself down. As much as he hated to admit it, Thierry was right. If he fought Jonathan now he didn't think it would end well. Maybe his life as the Reaper would help him in the fight, but Jonathan played dirty during fights and Storm would most likely lose.

"I know that look, Storm." Jonathan spoke. "You're tired of listening to Lord Thierry, aren't you? Tired of him ordering you around. You're not going to take it any longer, are you? He's not the boss of you. Are you going to let him pick your fights for you, like a _child_?"

"Storm—" Thierry started, but was cut off on the account of Storm jerking his arm out of his grip.

Jonathan smiled and his eyes glowed brighter with excitement and he took a step forward, nodding slowly, coaxing Storm forward.

"Jonathan," Emerald's voice came. It was weak, and just barely a whisper. Storm froze and he looked over at her unmoving form. Her eyelids fluttered before opening half-way. She didn't even bother to lift her head. It was apparent that whatever happened, whether it was the unusual purple lightning or what happened when she was underground, had really worn her down; drained all her energy.

Jonathan paused before backtracking and looked over his daughter. A wane smile formed on her lips. "I see you've been toying with some black magic." she commented. Jonathan's eye twitched. More of that purple lightning crackled at the tip of the vine trunk for a second before traveling down to Emerald, who couldn't stop the scream the bubbled up to the surface.

"She's very loyal… unlike someone I know." Jonathan remarked, an eyebrow raised when the lightning had gone. Emerald was breathing hard, her chest heaving, her breath quick land broken.

Storm's heart ached seeing her like this, but they were all at the mercy of Jonathan. He couldn't do anything without hurting Emerald because of it.

"How do you know I'm not just playing them?" Emerald asked, looking him in the eye, the eyes that mirrored or her own. Storm had to remind himself she was just playing him, hearing those words coming from Emerald's mouth.

Jonathan rolled his eyes. "Please, Emerald, do you take me for a fool? You've been here a good week, ten days, how do I know they haven't turned you back to your good old, guilty, suffering self?"

Emerald channeled that person she'd been when her world had fallen to pieces and smiled. "Do you hear me complaining?" Jonathan appraised her. "How do you know I haven't just been humoring them?"

"You ratted me out." Jonathan pointed out.

Emerald shrugged, which was awkward in the kind of position she was in at the moment. "You weren't there anyway. Why should that matter?"

"Because it's simply the fact that you told them in the first place." her father countered as soon as the words were out of Emerald's mouth.

"Then I guess you don't know me as well as you originally thought, dearest father." Emerald told him with a sarcastic smile.

Johnathan glowered at her for a moment before just like that the vines disappeared, Emerald falling to the ground just able to catch herself, landing heavily on her hands and knees. She let out a hiss before struggling to her feet. Jonathan reached down and grabbed her upper forearm, pulling her up but she just as quickly jerked her arm out of his grasp, taking a step away from him and glaring at her father silver flooding her eyes momentarily.

"I don't need your help." she spat readjusting her shirt and standing up straighter. "Let's go." Without waiting for an answer she started away from Thierry's mansion, stepping over two of his mummified workers almost as if they weren't even there. Jonathan followed swiftly with no last words to Lord Thierry or Storm who were still standing on the walkway leading up to the front door of the mansion, a little dumbfounded at just what happened.

* * *

><p>It was a wooden house bare inside and out that was surprisingly clean on the inside for being out in the middle of the Nevada desert. The doors, the floors didn't creak. The windows weren't fogged down with un-removable dust that collects when living in the middle of nowhere in a desert. It was <em>almost<em> like it'd had just sprung up suddenly for Jonathan's purposes or that it was recently built.

Whatever the case, it was very well hidden and out of the way. Jonathan led Emerald inside only to stop a few feet away from the threshold. Emerald, now wary, walked forward a few steps, examining her father with narrowed eyes closely. What was he up to now?

"Miss Nehalenia," Jonathan called out. "Why don't you bring the girls down here and we'll all welcome our new guest, hm?" His eyes turned toward Emerald. "They'll be here in just a moment; just stay where you are."

Emerald crossed her arms and scrutinized him, but her father had to have the best poker face she'd ever seen. Nothing got in or out and she could never quite figure out what he was up to. The only time she seemed to know was when he wanted her to.

A woman, probably 19 or 20, opened one of the doors on the first floor, standing in the doorway, smiling. She was a little taller than Emerald, with pin-straight, long dark hair that had a purple tinge to it. Her iris were a deep violet but her pupils were silvery-yellow slits, like a cat. She was very pale, almost like a vampire, but Emerald knew better. This must have been the witch Jonathan was working with.

Nehalenia stepped out of the doorway and went up to Jonathan and hugging him.

"You're back," Her voice was soft, quiet, solemn, and just a tad deeper than most girls' voices.

Jonathan smiled. "You miss me?" he asked.

Nehalenia merely winked before turning toward the still open door. Without saying anything two other girls stepped through the doorway. Emerald recognized Hannah, so the other girl must've been Rashel. They both looked _almost_ emaciated, like they were just being fed the bare minimum, and both their eyes darted around the room, not focusing in on one single thing, but Rashel's seemed a little less frantic and more appraising.

Nehalenia turned back around and looked at Emerald with those odd cat-like eyes.

"And you must be Emerald." she drawled. Her eyes slid back to Jonathan. "I suppose I can see some similarities." she muttered mostly to herself. "So, did she finally give up? Is she going to give us what we want?" Emeralds eyebrows twitched up in surprise. _We_? _Us_? As far as she knew, Jonathan wanted whatever she had all to himself. He'd dispose of Nehalenia as soon as he got the chance. If she was such a powerful witch, how come she didn't see this?

"Well, not exactly." Jonathan answered his eyes on Emerald. Nehalenia glared at Emerald and Emerald got the notion that Jonathan and the witch had some kind of thing going on. It's not like Emerald was any kind of threat, she was his daughter and just the thought alone was positively revolting, but Jonathan was now giving all his attention to her and not to Nehalenia and this made her jealous.

Without another word, Jonathan grabbed Hannah's arm who squeaked. Rashel stepped forward out of instinct but Jonathan growled, "Watch it _Lancer_." before turning around, with Hannah's arm still firmly in his grip and throwing her at Emerald.

She stumbled and Emerald quickly caught her and righted her.

This behavior was puzzling. What was Jonathan doing? Emerald thought they'd just come here to take her and let Rashel and Hannah go. Not all of this nonsense!

"Kill her." Jonathan ordered, gesturing to Hannah with his chin.

"Excuse me?" Emerald asked looking at her father carefully.

Jonathan smiled. "You heard me." Pause. "Did you really think that I'd welcome you back just like that?" He laughed. "Do you take me for a fool. I _invented_ lying. I can tell when someone is lying. And you, my dearest daughter, appeared to be lying. So, to prove that you weren't, all I ask is for you to take care of Hannah, will you?"

Hannah cringed and shivered in Emerald's grasp, but didn't try to get away. Emerald stared at her father her jaw working before telling him, "I can't."

Jonathan gave her a knowing smile and shook his head slowly. "That's just too bad." he sighed pulling out small metal lighter, flicking it open and igniting it. Emerald's dark eyebrows furrowing now, confused.

"What—?" she started but he dropped it and Emerald looked down. She had just enough time to realize that she was standing in a perfect circle made with what she assumed was gasoline or something flammable at the least and then push Hannah out of the circle right before the lighter hit the liquid and ignited a circle around her. Nehalenia had to have cast a spell on the gasoline because the flames were higher than normal flames would be, they didn't burn through the wooden floor—didn't even scorch it—and they were a deep purple, with lighter purple, pink even, near the tips of the flames.

"What is this?" Emerald demanded harshly glaring at her father.

Jonathan held his smile. "This is to keep you restrained while we... work on some things. I wouldn't want you running off, now would I?"

Emerald crossed her arms and rolled her eyes before looking at her father again.

"You get anywhere near these flames and you'll be ashes in less than a second." Jonathan explained. Nehalenia handed him a jacket just then and he demonstrated this by holding it to the fire. The fire rushed up the jacket in a big _whoosh_ and Emerald just had enough time to see the ashes of the jacket before they fell and disappeared into the flames.

"Work on things? What things?" Emerald queried, moving on from the circle of fire.

Jonathan simply smile as he always does and before Emerald could even brace herself for what was about to come, a picture seemed to just flash before her eyes, but it's impact on her conscious was excruciating and so shocking, it rocked her backward. She always went spilling into the flames, but had just enough of a mind left to fall forward, onto her hands and knees, gasping at what she'd just seen. It was gone now, and she wasn't _quite_ sure what she'd seen, but it was... horrible.

Still on her hands and knees, gasping for air, she tried to speak but the picture came again, but this time it stayed. Now she was drowning in it. All of it. Not just this singular moment in time, but all of what'd she'd done in the past. All the pain she caused, all the hurt she caused, all the vampires she'd killed. The guilt, the shame, the anguish came rushing through her like a gust of wind, smothering the monsters that still protected her mind from all these things.

It pushed against her demons, forcing them back into the gaping pit. It was an internal war roaring inside of her. She didn't want to be a monster, and Storm had been right, her past is what made her who she is today, but as horrific as it sounded she didn't want her monsters to go away. They kept her nearly emotionless. She didn't have dreams of Storm killing any longer. Her guilt wasn't overwhelming, or choking any longer. The shame was almost nonexistent. The ripping pain was gone because her emotions weren't there. If she let her monsters be pushed back into her internal prison the emotions would take over again and she'd be as good as dead to Rashel and Hannah.

It was like cutting cold turkey. She didn't think she could handle the sudden onslaught of such negative emotions, _especially_ now.

Emerald was about to fight against this "good" that was trying to get rid of her horrors, but then that same picture, that scene frozen in time appeared in her mind.

_Hal._

What had she done?

What had she done... to him?

His body was mangled and maimed. Blood pooled around his body on the floor and his bones were broken, limbs at odd angles, protruding from his pale skin.

_Emerald_ had done this to him. They had used to be friends and _she'd done this to him_. It made her sick remembering something so horrible. It made her sick knowing that she'd even done this to someone she knew. Worse still she had no memory of ever doing it.

And just like that, with one last mighty shove her monsters and demons fell back into her pit where they'd stay until Emerald could no longer contain them (which hopefully would be never).

With a choked gasp Emerald blinked and opened her eyes. Her eyelashes were wet and she was now sitting on her legs, her hands still on the ground. Her chest heaved and her heart ached. Guilt. Shame. Anguish.

Still breathing raggedly she looked up. The ring of fire had vanished, not even leaving any traces of the gasoline that fueled it. Jonathan and Nehalenia were standing a few feet in front of her, watching intently. Rashel and Hannah were nowhere to be seen.

More tears slid down Emerald's cheeks when she blinked, but she was too worn to care.

Looking at both her father and his sidekick which, she spoke her voice just barely a shaky whisper, her lips just barely moving: "What have you done?"

**I know, I know, it's been... _months_. But I had three AP classes and final exams coming up, so I had to focus on that. Also, I kind of lost my muse.**

**I know this chapter is shorter than my usual, but I _promise_ (and this time I mean it because there's only two weeks of school left for me anyway) that I will post within the next week with a longer chapter.**

**I hope you enjoyed and a warning: the end of this story will be coming soon.**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	34. Thirty Four

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: I should stop making promises, because if there's any kind of promise that's hard to keep it's fanfiction promises. Sorry, guys, life just changes so much and so often that I just don't know when I can or cannot post.**

Beginning

This pain was just so overwhelming. She wanted it to stop! To go away! She was doing perfectly fine without it. Why did they have to bring it back? How had she handled it before?

Emerald leaned forward again, facing the floor, knotting her hands in her hair, pulling at it the physical pain nothing compared to the emotional turmoil roiling inside of her.

"What have you done?" she yelled at Jonathan and Nehalenia, looking up at them again, more tears in her eyes.

Without a word, Jonathan came over and took one of her wrists, wrapping that arm around his neck, before putting his own arm around her waist and pulling her to her feet. Emerald wanted to jerk out of his grip, but she realized that what had happened—whatever it was—has completely drained her energy. She could barely stand up, let alone fight against Jonathan. She stumbled alongside him, leaning against him heavily, however much he revolted her.

"Nehalenia told me that we needed you the way you are now if this was going to ever work." Once again he answered a question without actually answering it any. In fact it made Emerald even more confused about the whole situation and why Jonathan seemed to be after her constantly.

"If what was ever going to work?" Emerald questioned, slurring her words.

"You'll find out in just a moment, my dear." he answered.

"Yeah, but that won't tell me anything about why." she pointed out.

Jonathan laughed before looking over at Nehalenia who was walking next to him. "What do you think? Think we should tell her?" he asked.

"No, I don't think so." she answered with a smile of her own before walking forward and opening a door for Jonathan and Emerald. Inside was a large circle that spanned the entire floor. Inside the circle was decorated with symbols and designs that Emerald didn't recognize. In the middle of the circle stood about a three-foot-high stone dais, its sides decorated with more of the same symbols and signs.

Jonathan stepped down into the room, which was about three inches lower than the whole house, and laid Emerald down on the dais. She looked around the room dazed and confused, just barely able to keep her eyes open, barely able to even think about what was going on, she was so worn. And the pain was all-consuming. She was hoping that maybe she'd get some relief from the incessant agony.

The next few moments are a haze in Emerald's memory, a blur, like her mind always did with bad memories. She remembers seeing her father's face hovering over her, as she faded in and out of consciousness. And it was in that unconsciousness that she was awoken from by a ripping, stabbing, pinching, nonstop torment. She seemed to detach from herself for a moment, because at one point she wondered who was screaming so loud and horrible before she realized it was herself.

Then it was over and Emerald vaguely remember hearing either Jonathan or Nehalenia saying whatever they'd done hadn't worked and that they'd have to try again, before Emerald sunk into a blissful blackness.

* * *

><p>They were kept in a room in the house. They could've escaped fairly easily but if Rashel hadn't tried or had tried and failed then Emerald knew that Nehalenia must've cast some spell on either the room or the house that would prevent them from leaving. Attempting would probably get all three of them killed, so Emerald decided it'd be best if she didn't try. Besides she didn't want to risk Rashel or Hannah's lives, as much as she was really starting to loathe their soulmates.<p>

They kept to one side of the room while Emerald kept to her corner. Always lying on her side, with her back to them.

It was probably two or three in the morning when Emerald felt a hand brush her cheek. Her eyes fluttering open she gasped and quickly rolled over but saw no one. No one was in the room but Rashel and Hannah, and they were in the other corner as far away from Emerald as possible, sleeping. After looking around the room for a moment longer and not seeing anything or anyone, she rolled back over onto her side and tried to sink back into that numbness she'd managed to summon.

But it wasn't long after when she felt someone's breath dance across her neck. Her eyes opened again, but she didn't move a muscle, trying to look through the corners of her eyes. Still she saw nothing but the ceiling of the room. Still looking at the ceiling though, she felt a hand touch her arm.

Her heart jumped in her chest. She didn't exactly believe in ghosts, but...

"Emerald," a voice whispered.

She'd recognize that voice anywhere.

"Storm?" she asked, still not moving. It couldn't be. She certainly didn't see him here. She sat up again and turned to look around the room again. "Storm?" she asked again, her voice rising slightly.

"Close your eyes." His voice came from behind. "Lay down and close your eyes."

Emerald turned back around once more and lied down on her side and closed her eyes. It took her a moment to calm her racing heart, but she finally managed to do this and instantly she felt a pull on the chord she hadn't felt before. She relaxed and let herself be pulled and suddenly she was with Storm.

She could see him, he was tangible. She didn't know where they were, but all she could see was him and his drop-dead beautiful eyes. They embraced and she marveled at the feeling of having his arms around her, holding her tightly. It was comforting.

Then she realized that Rashel or Hannah could've done this—connected with their soulmates through the bond—so why hadn't they? They could've easily resolved this problem without it being all that messy.

Storm pulled back, but didn't let go of Emerald.

"They've tried, believe me. But the witch that's working for him must have created some potion or spell that virtually cuts off their connection." Storm explained, answering her unvoiced question. He reached up and gently brushed some hair from her face. "I'm kind of surprised that they haven't blocked ours... but I'm glad." he breathed smiling. "You-you have to tell me," he murmured. "You have to tell me where they're keeping you. We're going to come and save all of you."

"I-I don't want you to be in any danger. They've got me and they're going to get what they want and it'll be all over." Emerald told him unconvincingly.

"Emerald, just tell me. You know as well as I do, that even though you don't know what they want, they're going to kill all of youronce they get it. And if they want it so badly then it won't be good for the rest of us, either."

"Yeah, but something that's inside me that's so detrimental? What's so special about me?" There was a harsh bitterness to her voice.

"Everything." Storm whispered.

Emerald gave a wane smile.

"I... I just—" she broke off and closed her eyes for a moment.

"Emerald we're all grown adults here. We can take care of ourselves. You have to stop this." Storm's voice rose. "Don't worry about us. Worry about yourself for once. No one will think you're selfish. We don't have much time. You have to tell me before they realize what's happening."

Emerald's mouth opened and closed as she tried to form words. Somewhere, in the distance she heard what sounded like a door swinging open and she knew the connection was going to be broken any second. All she could really give him now were the house, its surroundings, and the road that sat several hundred yards away from it before she was being jerked awake.

Jonathan had grabbed her upper forearm and was pulled her into a sitting position. His expression was a mix between anger and embarrassment which was new to Emerald. She'd never seen embarrassment cross his face in the time she'd known him. He didn't seem like the one to show those kinds of emotions. But just as she thought this all emotions were wiped clean from his face.

"Hand me the cup." he instructed in a monotoned.

Nehalenia who'd also come in handed him a tall, thin, clear glass filled almost the top with a liquid colored a very light lavender.

Emerald clamped her mouth shut tightly, but having been through this twice before with Rashel and Hannah, they knew that this would be her first defense. Nehalenia held her nose and when Emerald had to breathe her mouth opened and Jonathan took that chance to pour the horribly bitter-tasting liquid. But she wasn't forcing herself not to swallow she shot it back into Jonathan's face.

He wasn't too pleased.

"I didn't want to have to do this, Emerald, but you've left me no choice." he sighed, his face gleaming in the light flooding through the doorway from the juice she'd spat in his face.

Jonathan handed the glass back to Nehalenia and Jonathan started to force Emerald to the floor. Because it'd only been a couple of hours since that weird memory flash thing _and_ that weird thing they'd done in the room with the circle taking up the whole floor, Emerald was still really weak.

She fought against him but he managed to get a wrist down, putting his foot firmly on it to make sure she couldn't move, and after that it was fairly easy for him to get her other wrist down, putting his knee of this one to hold it to the floor. Grabbing Emerald's neck with one hand Nehalenia put a large tube into his other. Without hesitating he forced the tube into her mouth and before she knew what was going on he was shoving it down her throat.

It scraped her throat as it went down her esophagus and it wasn't the greatest feeling in the world. She coughed and back arched as she struggling to slip from Jonathan's grasp, but he held firm.

When he was done Nehalenia then handed him a funnel and she poured the drink into the tube which flowed straight into Emerald's stomach. When the whole cup had drained Jonathan pulled the tube out which hurt just as much as having it being shoved in, and got off of Emerald. Both Jonathan and Nehalenia then exited the room, shutting the door with a resounding slam that echoed through the empty house.

Emerald sat up, gasping and coughing, and holding her now incredibly sore throat. She just hoped that Storm would be able to figure out where they were from what she gave him... which really wasn't much.

But what really concerned at the present moment was if her body was going to accept whatever was just shoved down her throat. Speaking of, where they going to give her blood or where they just going to let her go insanely thirsty and possibly attack Rashel or Hannah? Emerald has a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach that it was the latter. But that also could've been from that weird potion she'd just ingested.

* * *

><p>"Emerald!"<p>

Emerald sat up and turned around immediately before being engulfed in a familiar, comforting, warm embrace.

"Storm—" she started but was quickly cut off on account of Storm pulling back just enough to kiss her and for a moment she was caught up in the mere sensation of kissing him. She'd been away from him for so long, it felt like. They hadn't had a moment like this possibly since she turned evil and it felt good to be back in Storm's arms again.

She greedily took advantage of this moment and let the world around them fall away from a moment, knotting her hands in his thick, soft hair; his arms coming around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

Storm was the first to pull away, always keeping in the back of his mind where they were.

"We need to go," he whispered, caressing her cheek, resting his forehead on hers. Emerald, closed her eyes for a moment, taking it all in. Just being next to him, holding his hand, filled Emerald with new energy, energy she knew she'd need soon.

A sudden snarl broke through the silence that surrounded Storm and Emerald. They both stood together, to face the other corner of the room where Thierry and Quinn had finally been reunited with their soulmates, but the moment wasn't as sweet as they'd hoped. Quinn was standing in front of Rashel, shaking with fury, his black holes for eyes trained on Emerald.

"I'll kill you!" he snarled through clenched teeth. "You bit her! You _drank_ from her!"

"Well what did you want me to do? Kill her?" Emerald spat back, not able to control her temper.

With a growl, Quinn lunged forward but he didn't get very far, for Thierry stepped in front of him, stopping him in his tracks, before he could do any lasting damage, not that Emerald wouldn't stop him herself.

"Now is not the time for this." Thierry warned. "We need to be quiet and get out of here as quickly as possible."

"You say that like you think that Jonathan sleeps." Emerald told him. Thierry turned to look at her cautiously, judging on whether or not she was mocking him and that's when she realized that they'd come at during the night and not when Jonathan and Nehalenia had left, if they ever did. "Jonathan doesn't sleep." The words came out of Emerald's mouth in a whisper when she realized what big trouble they were in.

"It's true you know." Jonathan said from the doorway of the room. Storm instinctively stepped in front of Emerald—though she was not too pleased when he did so—and Thierry in front of Hannah, but Quinn knew Rashel well enough that she wouldn't want Quinn protecting her. "But I have things I need to be doing right now. I'll just let the help take care of you." With that Jonathan turned and walked away. Three werewolves and four vampires took his place, flooding into the room.

Before the soulmate pairs could react Jonathan's cronies attacked with the force of a tsunami.

One of the vampires rushed Emerald, throwing a right hood, which Emerald easily avoided but that was just a distraction for one of the wolves to lunge at her, its snapping jaws coming inches away from her neck. The force knocked them both over, but Emerald used this momentum to kick the wolf up and over her. She rolled to her right and stood up just as a different vampire landed where she'd just been.

Emerald's hand shot out and grabbed his neck, slamming him down to the ground, before putting her foot on his neck, keeping him on the ground. Snarling vulgar words his hands came up to claw at Emerald's leg. Blood poured from the lacerations he was creating but Emerald didn't even bat an eye as she pressed her foot down harder on his neck, forcing him to stop.

She looked up and searched for Storm who was currently wrestling with a werewolf.

"Storm!" she called, ducking just as another werewolf soared over her head narrowly missing her.

"Kind of busy!" Storm grunted back as he slammed the wolf into the wall. It yelped and slumped to the ground.

"I'm going to find Jonathan." she told him avoiding getting hit and then throwing her own punch.

"Emerald—" Storm broke off as another vampire came at him.

"Are you going to be okay?" she asked becoming distracted enough to let up on the vampire she'd been holding down with her foot. He shot up, rocking Emerald back on her heels and losing her balance, falling to the hard-wood floor painfully. Stars flashed before Emerald's eyes and when they cleared that same vampire was standing over her, smirking.

"Not so hot now, huh, princess?" he mocked.

Rolling her eyes she brought her leg out, tripping him up and making him fall flat on his face, before pushing herself to her feet. Storm appeared out of nowhere, right next to Emerald.

"I'll be fine. You go." he said.

Emerald nodded and turned about to sprint through the door, because they'd already wasted enough time, but Storm caught her hand and spun her back toward him, bringing her into a kiss.

"Be careful." he whispered pulling away.

"Ditto." Emerald breathed. He pulled her in for another kiss before releasing her hand. She swiftly ran through the battle haze, and disappeared through the doorway, after Jonathan.

**Also, I apologize it's a little short (and if it seems kind of rushed), but I love cliffhangers, because I'm heartless and I like to torture you guys.**

**Also, if your were confused about what happened to Emerald in the last chapter here's it in a nutshell: Nehalenia blasted Emerald with "pictures" of what'd she done reminding Emerald of her past, of who she really is and used some magic to help who she really is push all the monsters that were controlling her then back into their prison. Hope that makes sense.**

**No promises this time.**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	35. Thirty Five

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

End

He was waiting for her in the hallway, leaning against the wall so casually you'd think he was simply waiting for his daughter so they go out to lunch together, not waiting for his daughter so they could fight to the death.

"Why does this not surprise me?" Emerald asked as soon as she spotted him, slowing her pace and her racing heart.

"Well I couldn't very well leave my daughter, now could I? Besides, you still haven't given me what I want." he responded.

Emerald crossed her arms. "Maybe if you told me what you wanted I'd give it to you more willingly, ever think of that?"

Jonathan's eyes flashed and he pushed himself away from the wall. "Of course I have," he spat suddenly angry. "You don't think that Nehalenia and I haven't talked about? We've talked about non-stop!"

Emerald smiled enjoying seeing her father so angry, but her whole body was tense her eyes never leaving Jonathan, watching for any sign that he was going to attack. "Where is your little girlfriend, anyway?"

"She's not my girlfriend." Jonathan muttered.

"I don't think she'd agree." Emerald jaunted. "What do you see in her anyway? She's not Trinity. She doesn't look like her. She doesn't act like her. She's a witch—"

Jonathan's hand slamming into the wooden wall, stopped Emerald mid-sentence. "You'd keep your mouth shut, young lady, if you knew what was good for you." he hissed slowing removing his bloody, but already mending hand from the wall.

Emerald's smile grew wider and she uncrossed her arms preparing for her father to attack after saying, "Make me."

He rushed her and the fight began in that narrow hallway. Knowing her father well enough by now, she knew she had to extra vigilant because no doubt he had dirty tricks up his sleeve, like the fact that his fighting style had changed since the last time they'd fought. Though, it had been brief last time and he may have not been showing his true form knowing that they'd meet again and fight again.

Jonathan threw a right hook that Emerald easily dodged before throwing her left elbow out which he narrowly avoided. She brought her left arm back, hand fisted, but Jonathan grabbed her wrist and spun her, twisting her arm in the process. Emerald slammed her foot down; Jonathan moving his out of way just as her right elbow slammed into his jaw.

His grip loosened and she spun out not hesitating to throw another punch as soon as she was facing him again. He deflected her fist by taking her wrist and pulling her forward his free hand slamming into her stomach, shock waves of Power rushing through her. Emerald's breath rushed out of her lungs, and her knees buckled.

Jonathan gripped her wrist as he spun her around and threw her straight through a door, blowing it off it's hinges. It was the room with the circle and the stone dais.

Because it was an inch lower, Emerald stumbled in, slamming her arm into the dais, her humorous snapping clean in half. She gritted her teeth and let out a growl, snapping it back into place so it could mend, but this took time she didn't have.

Before she could gather her bearings Jonathan had stepped inside the room. She looked up at him just as his hand shot out grabbing her neck, lifting her and slamming her down onto the top of the dais. Stars danced across her vision as her hand connected with cement.

Her hands came up to Jonathan's wrist, digging her razor sharp nails into his flesh, beads of blood forming like tears in an eye and slowly rolling down Jonathan's arm. This only made her father hiss and tighten his grip on her neck.

"You're _pathetic_." he spat. "And for your information, yes, so what if Nehalenia and I have something? You _killed_ your mother. I had to move on. You can't live in the past. You should know that by now, shouldn't you?"

Emerald, having enough of it, grasped his wrist with her left hand and brought the palm of her hand at his arm with enough force that both the bones in his arm snapped, one ripping easily through is skin, the blood spurting and hitting Emerald in the face. But she barely took note of this as Jonathan drew back cussing at her, gripping right arm.

Wasting no time Emerald flew up of the dais and managed to get two blows straight to her father's face in before he regrouped and started deflecting and dodging the rest of her fists.

Then he lashed out, pissed off with the force of a stampede, and Emerald was just barely able to get away from him. More often than not he'd get a blow in that she just couldn't avoid. At one point he kicked her and she went flying back into the hallway, managing to roll out of the way before Jonathan came down on the spot she'd just been in. There was a moment of relief and Emerald used this brief period of time to gather herself.

The fight continued on and Emerald carefully studied his moves, as she defended herself, trying to dodge his fists and feet and knees.

But it seemed that just when she had gotten the hang of this new, primeval fighting style and just when she was about to go on the offense, his whole strategy changed.

Not prepared for this sudden transition Emerald slipped up and Jonathan's fist came at her at full speed right into her stomach. Her knees gave out at the shock of the blow and she fell back her vision going black for a moment on impact with the floor. She blinked rapidly clearing her vision just in time to see Jonathan loom over her with a smirk.

"Do you not remember the last time we fought?" he asked, breathing heavily. "I just can't believe that you've killed so many of our kind. If you always fight like this that must mean that this generation of vampires has just gotten stupider."

"I think _you_ forgot something, daddy dearest," Emerald told him her chest heaving, ignoring his comments and shifting her whole body, so that her leg swooped behind Jonathan's ankles, knocking him wayward as Emerald got to her feet. "I'm not a human anymore, thanks to you." She glared down at him. "Now," she started ripping some of the wood off from the wainscot on the hallway wall and quickly stuck it over Jonathan's heart, putting just enough pressure on it telling him she was serious. "What's this about the thing you need from me?"

Jonathan's arm twitched and Emerald pushed the make-shift stake harder into his chest.

"Move an inch and I'll run you through." she warned. "Tell me what you want from me."

"You should kill me while you have the chance, sweetie." Jonathan answered.

That took Emerald aback, only because she finally had the upper hand and she could most certainly kill him right and right now. So why wasn't she? All she had to do was put enough pressure on the stake and he'd be dead, gone. She wouldn't have to worry about him ruining her life anymore and whatever what was inside of her that he wanted so badly would just stay with her never used.

Jonathan smiled and laughed, breaking Emerald out of her musings. Emerald felt a twinge of pure hatred wash over her and was just about to run him through and end this madness when there such a strong pull on the chord that connected her to Storm it made her freeze in her tracks and for a moment she was with him, looking out from his point of view.

He was still in the same room the fight had originated from but the room was now vacant except for him and another vampire. He was on the floor in a corner with the vampire standing over him, holding a very long stake to his chest, and smiling wickedly.

Emerald gasped as she was thrown back into her own body. She looked down at Jonathan who hadn't moved at all, even though he could've easily slipped out from under the stake and killed Emerald right then and there.

Then it hit her, this fight had only been a decoy. This wasn't his actual plan, his actual plan was to draw her away from the fight and stall giving his cohort enough time to get Storm to where he is now, facing his death.

He hadn't moved while she'd been gone because he knew, he knew that it was now lose Jonathan—let him get away—or lose Storm. And he knew... he knew that she'd choose Storm. She'd always choose Storm, no matter the circumstance.

Smiling and laughing, Jonathan gently took her make-shift stake from Emerald's numb hands and threw it to the side before standing up and facing her. She felt frozen as she watched him reach forward and brush some stray hair out of her face.

"You might want to get going now, sweetheart." He put a hand on her shoulder. "I ordered Andrew to kill him." Then he stepped forward and kissed her forehead, like a loving father would do. And just like that he walked down the hall and out of the house.

Emerald stood there, still frozen for a second longer before remembering why she'd just let her sociopath of a father go. Her heart jumping in her chest she sprinted down the hall and to the room that she felt like she knew all too well and came upon Storm cornered with a stake—a fairly long, thin stake like he'd taken it from a broomstick, almost—about to run him through.

"No!" she shrieked as Andrew brought the stake down, rushing forward and shoving him out of the way. But it was too late, Emerald's body seemed to explode with pain and she fell forward against the wall, sinking down to her knees, her breathing rapid and shallow. If this was what it felt like through the bond she had no idea what kind of torture Storm was going through—Storm!

Emerald forced herself up and looked over to her left to see Storm, bone white, and barely breathing, all thoughts about Andrew disappearing instantly.

Without really thinking, Emerald pulled the stick out, wincing when Storm let out a cry of agony, and throwing it to the side. The stake had run clean through, for a pool a blood started to span out from the wound on the wood floors beneath Storm.

Emerald leaned over him, hands fluttering over his chest, too scared and panicked to know what to do, to think straight.

"I'm sorry," she gasped, tears tinged red from Jonathan's blood streaming down her face. "I'm so sorry. I-I froze. I didn't come in time."

Storm, half-conscious, reached up and grabbed one of her hands. His eyes were half-closed, half-glazed and through the bond Emerald could feel him slowly slipping away.

"I love you, Emerald." His voice was just barely a whisper.

Emerald shook her head. "You're not going to give up. I won't let you. I _need_ you. Please, don't leave me." Her voice became muffled as she rested her head down on Storm's chest, sobbing so hard her body shook.

The pool beneath Storm was steadily growing larger, reaching Emerald's knees, soaking into her jeans.

"Somebody, help!" she shrieked, lifting her head again, hoping maybe, just maybe Thierry or Quinn, or Rashel or Hannah were still here by some miracle and, although not having the best relationship, help Storm. "_Please!_ Someone, help!"

Storm pulled his hand out of Emerald's and reached up to caress her cheek, grabbing her attention again. Emerald put her own hand over his and gazed into his fluttering eyes.

"Don't leave me." she whimpered. "You can't leave me."

* * *

><p>There was something or someone nestled up against Storm. Warmth radiated from them making all the aches in his body lesson. Storm struggled to open his eyes, recognizing his room in New York, in his house when he finally managed to get them open and keep them open. Storm looked down besides him and realized it was Emerald that was snuggled up next to him. He should've known it'd be her, only she could make him feel this nice, when he'd just been stabbed through the heart.<p>

He reached down and gently stroked her cheek, waking her. She sat up and looked at him, relief showing clearly on her face, her tense muscles going slack. Storm didn't fail to notice the dark bruises under her eyes from lack of sleep and wondered how long he'd been out and how long Emerald spend sleepless nights waiting for him to wake.

"You're awake." she breathed, scooting closer to him, careful about not putting her hand on his chest, that was now completely wrapped in gauze. "I was so worried."

"I can tell." His voice was hoarse and barely audible. "How?"

"Thierry helped. Said he owed you." Emerald rolled her eyes. "But... I guess I should be grateful. If he hadn't helped—" Her eyes watered and she bit her lip hard.

"I'm okay, now, though. I'm still here. I'm not going to leave you." he promised catching a stray tear just as it squeezed its way out of her eye. "Come here."

Emerald lifted herself and leaned closer to Storm, their lips just inches apart when the door opened followed by a small gasp and a mighty growl.

Emerald was on her feet, facing Carter and Sky, Sky in his tiger form standing protectively in front of Carter, who was looking wide-eyed at Emerald.

Was that fear she detected?

By now, Storm has managed to get out of bed, and he firmly planted himself in front of Emerald, was was just too stunned to complain or say anything for that matter. Why were they acting like she was the enemy? Why as Carter scared of her? She couldn't lose Carter too!

"Guys, it's fine." Storm's voice rang loud and strong and Emerald looked up at him from where she stood behind him, wondering where he'd found such strength when he _just_ woke up and he could barely talk not a moment ago. "She's not... bad anymore. She's back to herself. You have nothing to worry about." Storm continued in a commanding voice.

Sky's eyes gazed at Storm warily and shifted from Emerald to Storm. Carter also looked cautious but said, "It-it's okay, Sky." Her voice was quieter than Emerald remembered, but that may have been because of the circumstance.

Sky still didn't look too sure, but Storm decided at that moment that he'd used up the last of his energy reserves and nearly collapsed. Emerald caught him and held him up, getting him back into his bed, but just as she was about to pull away Storm grabbed her arm and spun her around, and suddenly she was lying on the bed with Storm hovering over her. It had all been an act!

"Storm…" Emerald mumbled, blushing because of the fact that Carter and Sky were watching.

Smiling, Storm lowered himself so that his body was just barely pressed up against Emerald's, making Emerald's breath catch and her heart race.

"How about that kiss, hm?" he asked deep and husky. Emerald closed her eyes and pressed her lips against his, one hand coming up and caressing his face, the other burying itself in his thick, silky hair. Emerald's pulse pounded as the kiss deepened and by now she had long forgotten that Sky and Carter were watching a very intimate scene between herself and Storm. But by then, she also didn't care.

All that mattered was knowing that Storm was safe and he was with her and he was alive.

Sky cleared his throat after another moment of passionate kissing and Storm pulled away from a breathless Emerald, winking before rolling off of her and sitting up to greet Sky and Carter. Emerald followed, and Storm wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her into his lap, taking one of her hands.

"You're dad said we could come visit any time." Carter explained softly. "We only just found the time with Sky's _prince_ duties."

"I'm not a prince." Sky muttered, playfully shoving her. Carter smiled and giggled before shoving him back. "We wanted to come see you. You know, make sure you were okay." His blue eyes shifted to Emerald for a second.

"Thank you, guys. I appreciate it." Storm told them ignoring the look. "I feel like I haven't seen you for a long time. How've things been?"

Sky shrugged, glancing at Emerald again. "The usual."

"How're my pets?" Emerald asked.

"They're doing fine. Sky's taken really good care of them and he _really_ appreciates that you let him rent out your apartment." Carter chimed in. Emerald smiled gratefully at Carter who returned it wholeheartedly. That's what Emerald just loved about Carter. She was always so sweet and gave people second chances; in Emerald's case this was probably like the fifth chance Carter had given her. "Isn't that right, Sky?" Carter asked nudging him.

Sky cleared his throat and mumbled, "Yeah, thanks, again." Looking at Emerald for a second but then quickly averting his gaze.

"I'm glad that you guys could stop by." Storm said.

"Uh, yeah, about that—" Sky broke off, rubbing the back of his head. "Do you think, maybe... I could have a word with you?" Pause. "In private?"

Storm looked down at Emerald, afraid that this offend her. She smiled and squeezed his hand before slipping off his lap and off the bed, like it was no problem, but Storm knew better. He knew that she was just putting up a front for his sake.

As she crossed to the door, Sky noticeably stepped back and tried to gently pull Carter that was as well, but she wouldn't have any of it. She walked up to Emerald and gave her a giant hug.

"It's good to have you back. I missed you." she whispered in Emerald's ear.

Emerald let out a breath. "I missed you, too. I hope you can come to trust me again." She pulled away, smiled sadly at Carter and quickly darted out of the room before she could burst into tears. However, she couldn't get away from the room quick enough before Sky started talking and afterward she just couldn't seem to get herself to move away from the door.

"You scared the living daylights out of me!" Sky whispered angrily. "I thought you said—"

"I know what I said." Storm interrupted harshly.

"She totally snapped—" Sky tried again.

"Rightfully so." Storm defended.

"But you just let her back in here like nothing happened? How do you know she's even changed? How do you know she won't snap again?"

"Sky, that's a little harsh don't you think?" Carter asked.

"I'm not going to put your life in jeopardy, Carter." Sky replied softly.

"She's my soulmate, I think I would know if she's changed or not." Storm told Sky harshly.

Something in the tone of Storm's voice jolted Emerald out of her numbness and she finally had enough of a mind to move, to quickly walk down the hall and down the stairs and into the living room where she sat on the couch waiting for what felt like eternity. And this eternity gave Emerald time to think about things she'd been thinking about on those sleepless nights as she waited for Storm to awaken which didn't help her mood, because it was going to be such a hard decision to make and not only that but she'd end up hurting Storm more than she could possibly imagine if she decided on one of those choices she'd come up with.

How was she going to break it to him? After all this time being away from him she was going to go and—

"Hey," Storm's voice interrupted her spiraling thoughts.

Emerald couldn't even manage a half smile this time.

"You-you should be in bed. Resting." Emerald choked out, her stomach tightening and curling painfully as she thought about her ultimatum. "Where'd Sky and Carter go?"

"They left, you looked a little preoccupied to notice." Storm explained.

"Why'd they react like that?" Emerald asked not able to hide the hurt in her voice.

Storm's eyes tightened and he took her into his lap, wrapping his arms securely around her. Emerald relaxed slightly, his warmth comforting.

"It was some time when you were… gone. My dad called and he knew something was up and I just couldn't find a good excuse and I couldn't hide my emotion coming through my voice... and I suppose because he's my father he knew that I was upset. But I-I told him all that had happened and I guess he told Carter and Sky just so you—" he broke off abruptly realizing what he was about to say. "Well, it really doesn't matter. I guess he just forgot to tell them that you had… come back."

"No, go ahead, say it." Emerald told him referring to where he'd broken off in his sentence.

Storm pulled away slightly and looked down at Emerald. "You really want me to, Emerald?"

"He was warning them, wasn't he?" Emerald asked. "So if, by any chance, they ran into me they wouldn't end up like… like Hal." She turned and buried her head in Storm's chest so ashamed of what'd she'd done. His maimed body imprinted permanently in her mind, always there, haunting her. Storm's arms tightened around her and he sat there holding her stroking her hair and rubbing her back, letting her cry so quietly, the only reason he knew she was crying was because of the sudden dampening of his gauze.

**Okay, last chapter is next. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. And I'd like to announced that my writer's block is finally gone! (Sorry, but I've had it since the beginning of the school year.)**

**Thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


	36. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Night World**

**A/N: This chapters is kind of based off Avril Lavigne's song "Smile"… well, the chorus at least.**

Epilogue: Smile

It seemed strange that with the potential end of the world (that Emerald had learned of during her search for Jonathan), Storm was still living at the same mansion he'd lived in all his life. Surely with all that was going on, or rather, all that was going to happen he'd be seeking some kind of refuge somewhere. Of course, Emerald had heard rumors that Lord Thierry had places, safe havens scattered around, but only for Circle Daybreakers. And after all that had happened between them and the Daybreakers, Emerald didn't think they'd be getting an invitation any time soon. Even with the so-called thing that would "tip the scales of which way the new millennia would turn out." Another thing she found out; what Jonathan was after. Obviously it was so far out there in left field that Emerald doubted she held the key to the survival of the human race, but Jonathan seemed to think that she did, so she really didn't know what to believe.

Emerald stood a few feet away from the front door, just far enough away that she could stand and look at the whole house. It was daunted, coming back here. After what felt like so long… two years, two years probably was a long time, Emerald supposed, but it felt like an eternity had gone by. She wouldn't be surprised if the end of the world had already come and she'd been somewhere unaware of what was going on in the outside world.

Her heart beat surprisingly steady as Emerald took slow, careful steps toward the door. Before she knew it her hand was reaching up knocking several times on the ornate wood door.

She waited, chewing the inside of her lip nervously.

Finally Emerald heard the sound of footsteps coming toward the door, then the sound of the dead-bolt unlocking, and finally the door opening the small movement stirring air on the threshold, blowing the sweet scent of home into Emerald's face. Nostalgia overwhelmed her for a moment so the only thing she could do was stare wistfully at the boy—well a better word would probably be man—standing in the half-open doorway. It was just as well because it seemed that was all he could do: stare at her his gorgeous eyes wide, his mouth slightly ajar.

He looked different, for some reason he looked… off. Emerald couldn't pinpoint why but he just felt different. Which was highly unlikely. For one it'd only been two years since she last saw him and for two, even if he had aged he couldn't have aged so much over the course of two years to look so different. And it wasn't so much as he _looked_ different, his eyes were the same wonderful electric blue (maybe even better than Emerald remembered) and his hair was the same length, wavy, and a beautiful cherry-wood color (Emerald momentarily wondered if it would be just as soft and silky as she remembered), something about him just felt… different.

Someone finally spoke, though it wasn't either Emerald or the man before her, it came from inside and it was very, _very_ female.

"Storm?" she called. "Who's at the door?"

Emerald's breath caught and her face flushed as realization washed over her. It wasn't like they hadn't talked about it before she'd left Storm had just always assured her that she'd be the only one for him, forever and always. Maybe he'd changed his mind, maybe they had different definitions of "forever" and "always", but either way the message was loud and clear and it was apparent what was going on.

"I'm sorry I didn't give you any notice," Emerald managed to say, finding her voice momentarily. "It looks like I interrupted something, so I'll just be on my way."

"Emerald, wait!" Storm objected as she quickly turned and started down the steps. It was all she could do to keep from sprinting down his drive and far, far away from his house.

There was a slam of a door and pursuing footsteps almost simultaneously.

"Emerald, let me explain!" Storm called again as Emerald quickened her pace.

"No, no, I-I really need to get going. I wasn't planning on staying long." Emerald told him momentarily slowing her pace and turning to face him before spinning back around and continuing forward.

"Emerald, you've got it all wrong." Storm sighed almost exasperated. Emerald clenched her fists, digging her nails into her palms, drawing blood, to keep from the tears that were threatening to spill over.

Suddenly a warm hand grasped her upper forearm, his grip firm but gentle at the same time. Emerald froze and let Storm turn her around so they were face to face.

Her eyes darted around refusing to meet his, her breath shallow and quick, blinking rapidly to hinder the potential flow of tears.

"Her name is Echo, and she's my dad's girlfriend." Storm told her.

Emerald blinked and looked up at him—had he possibly gotten taller?—unable to fully comprehend what she'd just heard.

"What?" she asked wanting to make suer she heard right.

Storm smiled and let go of Emerald's arm but took her hands into his. "That woman you heard talking was Echo, my dad's girlfriend."

Emerald was still getting over the shock but finally understood: she had totally overreacted.

"You didn't actually think that I had a new girlfriend, did you?" Storm asked quietly.

Emerald opened her mouth ready t lie so as to not hurt his feelings, but his blue eyes penetrated hers reminding her of a promise made not too long ago about never lying to each other again. She closed her mouth and smiled while reaching up and caressing his face. He put his hand over hers and closed his eyes.

"You know I love you, don't you?" she asked softly.

Storm opened his eyes again. "Of course I do." he answered.

"Two years is a… long time." she whispered her smile disappearing. "It isn't that I don't love you and it isn't that I don't think you don't love me. It's just maybe I felt you'd be happier with someone else. Someone who doesn't put you through so much grief."

Storm looked at Emerald for a few moments not saying anything, his hand still holding her hand that was caressing his face. The he took that hand and pulled her forward, entrapping her into a kiss, all in one fluid, swift movement. Warmth bloomed where Storm touched: the nape of her neck, the middle of her back, her waist as he wrapped his arm tightly around it, drawing her even closer to him.

Emerald wrapped her arms around his neck and ran her fingers through his thick hair and it was just as silky as she remembered, maybe possibly even silkier than she last remembered. And somewhere in the back of her mind she registered that she was standing on the tip of her toes. He _had_ gotten taller.

They pulled away but stood close, pressing their foreheads together.

"I love you, Emerald." Storm said. "You're the only one for me, the only one I'll ever love. Do you honestly think that I'd find someone else, over you?"

Emerald blinked and some tears slid down her face. "You know we had talked about it before I told you I was going to actually leave." She reminded him. "And it's not like I don't trust you or think you don't love me, I just…" She blinked and more tears streamed down her face. "People change, and I just feel like everyone I meet, anyone I've ever loved, leave me in some way or another. I guess I was just preparing myself for you to leave too."

Storm pulled her into his chest, wrapping his arms around her comfortingly, protectively. Again in the back of her head she registered that he'd grown much taller, from his few inches taller than her to about a head taller. She'd have to ask him about that later.

"I could never leave you." Storm announced quietly. Emerald waited for him to say it, to say what anyone else watching or even in this position would say. To calm herself she breathed in his familiar, comforting scent and closed her eyes. It wasn't like it was bad saying that, it's just it seemed like that was the _only_ reason and there's never only one reason you love someone.

She felt his arms tighten around her and she prepared for those words to leave his mouth.

"I love you. I will never stop loving you. You are amazing and beautiful, strong-willed and independent, ferocious and stubborn. You care deeply about the ones you love and are righteous. All these traits and so much more I've come to know and love about you. And I'd be the stupidest person who's ever lived if I were to let you go."

Emerald smiled, tears of joy and overwhelming love streaming down her face. He hadn't said it, not once; he hadn't even hinted at it at all.

Storm pulled away and looked down at Emerald.

"Those are good tears, right?" he asked warily.

Emerald laughed and nodded, unable to speak it was all so overwhelming, before capturing Storm in an embrace, who decided to take it a step further and lift Emerald off her feet and spin her around.

When he set her back on the ground he buried his nose in her soft hair and inhaled deeply. It'd been so long since he'd seen Emerald, held her in his arms; it felt amazing to finally be back with her after two long years.

* * *

><p>"Why don't you come in and meet Echo?" Storm invited when they'd broken apart. Emerald smiled, but it didn't quite match her eyes, but she said, "I'd love that."<p>

They both turned to walk up to the house just in time to see the door close, as if they were being watched that whole time. Storm and Emerald exchanged a glance before heading up to the front door, hand in hand.

Adrian and Echo—a tall, slender woman with, thick, wavy mahogany-brown hair that stopped just beyond her shoulders and glowing hazel eyes with green flecks in them—were waiting expectantly at the bottom of the staircase. Adrian's arm around Echo's waist. They were both smiling. Adrian especially, glad that Emerald had returned, knowing that Storm had longed for her to be back in his arms. Storm just wasn't the same without Emerald, she completed him. Seeing Storm going slumping through the day without her here was painful to watch. And Adrian couldn't even begin to imagine what Storm was feeling.

"Emerald," Adrian began. "I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Echo."

Echo held out her hand and Emerald took it, smiling. "It's nice to finally meet you, Emerald." Echo said. "Storm won't _stop_ talking about you." She laughed.

Emerald blushed, pulling her hand away and looking down embarrassed as Storm put an arm around her waist. "It's nice to meet you too." she mumbled self-consciously pushing some stray hair back behind her ear.

Storm laughed nervously. "You guys are _hilarious_." He started to edge his way past them and to the stairs, Emerald in tow. "But we'd like some privacy now, if you don't mind." Adrian opened his mouth to say something but Storm managed to slip past his dad and his girlfriend and was already half-way up the stairs. "Thanks." he called over his shoulder leading Emerald into his room and closing the door before Adrian or Echo could say anything more.

Emerald pulled away from Storm and looked around the room. Going up to the bed and stroking the smooth wood of his bed frame.

"Some things never change, do they?" Emerald mumbled everything in Storm's room looking exactly the same as it had the last time she'd been here.

"Some." Storm echoed almost distantly.

Emerald turned and looked at the man before her, with narrowed eyes. "You're taller." she noted.

Storm's eyes focused and he gave her a sheepish smile. "Well… I just—" Storm tried to explain, not able to think of why exactly he decided to age two more years. He was twenty now, which was an odd thought.

"Save it." Emerald rolled her eyes, smiling, but it still not quite matching her eyes, as she walked up to him. "You're lucky you're cute." she joked.

Storm reached up to caress her face. "Are you all right?" he murmured.

Emerald sighed, wishing she'd never made that stupid promise about never lying to each other again. "I just—" She shook her head, her eyes suddenly watering, her lower lip trembling slightly.

Storm immediately pulled her into him as she began to cry softly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." he whispered frantically, rubbing her back and stroking her hair. "Just take your time. Take all the time you need. You don't need tell me if you're not ready."

Emerald sniffed and wiped some tears off her face. "Thank you."

Storm pulled away a little to look at her. "No, thank you." he told her, caressing her cheek and wiping away more of her tears with his thumb before leaning down, pressing his lips to hers.

* * *

><p>When Storm awoke, out of habit, he felt the spot next to him. The sheets were icy cold. Sitting up he looked around the darkened room and spotted one of the French doors not closed fully, blowing the light curtains from the small breeze flowing through the crack. Silently slipping out of bed, Storm crept over to the door and slipped out to see Emerald leaning against the railing of the balcony, staring out into the horizon.<p>

Storm closed the door fully and Emerald turned to meet his eyes momentarily before turning back to the horizon.

Storm came to stand next to her.

"How long have you been up?" Storm asked quietly looking at her.

Emerald looked down for a moment before answering: "A long time."

The way she said it, the way her eyes were turned down and away from Storm, the way her hands were clasped to tightly together her knuckles turned white, Storm knew that "a long time" didn't mean just tonight.

"How long?" Storm asked carefully.

Her voice was just barely audible when she spoke: "Ever since I left."

Storm's eyes widened in surprise and shock. "You haven't slept in… _two_ years?" he asked her, confirming a specific time.

Emerald let out a big sigh. "You just… get used to it, after the first couple of months." She shrugged.

Storm put a hand on her arm. "But, why? Have you even tried to sleep since then?"

"I'll have nightmares." she whispered, shivering. "I can't."

"Emerald, you need to sleep. That's not healthy. I can't believe you're walking and talking right now." Storm urged as Emerald looked away. "Emerald," Storm gently caressed her face, turning it as he did so, before cupping her chin, making her look at him. "I'm here now. You don't need to worry."

Emerald's eyes watered and she pulled away from him, turning her back to him. "I didn't find him, okay? I didn't find my father." she said. "He's still out there, somewhere looking for me." Her voice shook as tears streamed down her face.

Storm took her into his arms, holding her close, and stroking her hair. "It's going to be okay. I'm here for you. You don't have to do this alone anymore."

"Even so, I'll still have nightmares, Storm. I _can't_ sleep." Emerald sobbed, her knees practically giving out beneath her all of the sleepless nights hitting her all at once.

"Emerald, you _need_ to sleep." Storm said, catching her, and pulling her into his arms. "You're really starting to worry me."

Emerald meagerly pushed at Storm's chest. "Let me up." she mumbled. "I can stand." she assured him.

Storm paused before gently setting Emerald down on her feet again, but she clutched his arm tightly.

"I'll be right next to you. I'm here for you." Storm reminded her softly. Emerald said nothing but let out a small sigh and Storm proceeded forward slowly toward the French doors that led inside, with Emerald trailing a little ways behind him, gripping his hand tightly, almost painfully, but Storm said nothing about it.

Storm slipped into the bed before Emerald, who climbed up next to him, resting her head on his chest and drawing as close to him as possible. Storm put his arms protectively around Emerald and closed his eyes, trying to get to sleep. However, did he fall asleep only after Emerald did.

It seemed only a few minutes or so before Emerald bolted upright in bed, not able to hold her scream of terror back. Storm sat up next to her, and put his arm comfortingly around her, but she shrugged his arm off.

She was breathing heavily, and some strands of hair were sticking to her forehead and neck.

"I told you," she sobbed. "I told you I'd have nightmares." She started to get up off the bed, but Storm quickly grabbed her hand. She looked at him tears pooling in her eyes.

Storm gently squeezed her hand before pulling her back onto the bed and into his lap. He cradled her, one hand around her shoulders, holding her to him, and the other hand holding both her hands to his chest.

"Shh, shh," he cooed reassuringly as she let out small wails and soft sobs. "It'll be all right. It's going to be just fine." he told her in a soothing, calm, relaxing, soft voice. He kissed her hair and rubbed her arm comfortingly, holding her tighter to him. He leaned in closer then, murmuring in her ear, "I want you to do something for me, Emerald."

Emerald pulled back and looked up at him with watery, questioning eyes.

Storm pulled her back into him. "I want you to close your eyes for me, okay?"

Emerald looked up at him with wide, panicked eyes. Her pulse pounded as her heart sped up. She started shifted and squirming in his lap. Storm gave her hands a gentle squeeze and held her tighter to him.

"Look at me, Emerald," Storm told her not quite commanding but not completely soft either. "Look at me." he said again, dropping her hands momentarily and cupping her chin, tilting her head up so their eyes met. Storm slowly dropped his hand and took her hands back into his, holding them against his chest again without looking away. "I want you to feel my heart beat. Listen to my breathing. Breathe with me." Together they took a breath. And another. And another. And soon enough Emerald's eyes slid closed and she rested her head against Storm's shoulder, still breathing in time with Storm.

"Feel the bond connecting us." Storm continued resting his cheek on the top of Emerald's head, listening as her breathing slowed and her heart calmed. "Feel my warmth, my love for you. You're not alone. I'm here. I'll always be here for you; know that. I'll _always_ love you."

Storm's own eyes closed slowly and before he knew it, he was out, just as Emerald was.

Adrian and Echo opened the door the next morning to find Storm and Emerald in the same position as the night before: Storm sitting in the middle of the bed with Emerald in his arms, both of them fast asleep.

_Sometimes there are no words. No clever quotes to neatly sum up what's happened that day... sometimes the day... just... ends. ~ Aaron Hotchner_

**Okay, I know it's probably not the best ending that you've ever read, but I kind of like it opened ended like that.**

**In any case, I hope you enjoyed this story!**

**Acknowledgements up on my website: thebrightestnight{dot}webs{dot}com**

**thank-you-for-everything**

**~ See you at the Millennium!**


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